It's Back
by minichurros123
Summary: An old enemy has figured out a way to bring back the Red Death and it requires Hiccup. Now everyone one must protect Hiccup from this enemy.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey peoples, I'm posting this story for now until I can get some ideas for my other story Restricted. I'm for some reason having writer's block on that story but I think I'll get inspired by something. Enjoy!**

It's Back Ch1: Nightmare

Third Person's P.O.V.

The spring breeze blew through Hiccup's hair as Toothless flew around Berk. it had been about a year since dragons were first welcomed to the island and right now, everything was peaceful. There hadn't been any attacks on Berk, no dragons were on a rampage, even the twins seemed to be calm. It was moments like these that Hiccup enjoyed the most because he didn't have to deal with anything and it put his father in a better mood.

"What do you wanna do today, bud?" Hiccup asked.

Toothless seemed to think for a second before he took to the forest. He flew down in between the trees and landed in the cove. They hadn't been there for a while and Toothless just wanted a day to relax and to have Hiccup to himself. For the past couple of days, Hiccup had been spending a lot of time with his friends in training or just hanging out with them so Toothless got stuck with the other dragons. It was nice to have some dragon company every once in a while but he liked Hiccup's company better.

"A nice quiet day at the cove," Hiccup said, "I like it."

Toothless turned to Hiccup and pounced on the boy, brushing Hiccup's ticklish areas with his snout. Hiccup laughed as he squirmed under the large reptile. Toothless discovered Hiccup's ticklish areas one day and now would have tickle fights with the boy, but the only problem was that Toothless didn't have any ticklish spots so it was pretty much torture for Hiccup.

"No, bud…please…stop!" Hiccup laughed and had to stop in between some of his words to breathe.

Toothless went on for a couple more minutes and then stopped to let the Viking catch a breather. The Night Fury laughed as Hiccup sat up, playfully glaring at the dragon.

"I hate how you know where my ticklish spots are."

Hiccup stood up and walked over to where Toothless had made himself comfortable. Toothless moved his wing and Hiccup leaned against the dragon's side, pulling out his sketchbook and a charcoal pencil he kept in his vest pocket and looked around for anything interesting to draw. He began to draw Astrid and Toothless watched with curiosity. He loved to watch Hiccup make a bunch of lines and shapes into pictures. Toothless hadn't really seen any of the other Vikings do art this well besides Bucket. All over Hiccup's bedroom and his little room in the shop were drawings and sketches Hiccup had done over the years. You could tell that he'd improved over the years. The drawings were mainly Toothless and some new invention designs but in a box under Hiccup's bed were drawings he'd made of Astrid and a woman Toothless hadn't seen on the island before. She had very long brown hair like Hiccup's in two very long braids, a narrow face, big green eyes like Hiccup's, and she was smaller than the other Viking women on Berk but Toothless never asked who she was. Those drawings were in that box for a reason.

"How's it look, bud?" Hiccup asked, holding up the drawing for Toothless to get a better look at.

This drawing was just Astrid's face but it was a lot like the real deal. Toothless nodded his head to say that it was good. The Viking flipped to a new page and began drawing the cove. He'd tried drawing the cove many times before but he just couldn't get it quite right. Time passed and both dragon and his rider were asleep.

Stoick was only slightly worried after not seeing Hiccup for most of the afternoon but when dusk came, he began asking his son's friends and Gobber if they've seen Hiccup. Most of them said no and then he went to Astrid who was spending time with her Nadder by her house.

"Hey chief," Astrid greeted.

"Hello Astrid, by any chance, did you see Hiccup today?"

"Earlier in the afternoon. Said he was gonna spend the day with Toothless."

"Alright, thank you."

"Why do you ask?"

"I just haven't seen Hiccup since this morning and I'm starting to worry. Nobody's seen him or Toothless."

"I can go look for them for you," Astrid said.

"That would be great. Thank you Astrid," Stoick said and flew off on Thornado.

Astrid strapped on Stormfly's saddle and took off for the forest. She remembered the location of the cove that Hiccup and Toothless still kept secret and guided Stormfly until they landed. Astrid looked around until she spotted a black mass on the other side of the pond. She walked over to find a sleeping Toothless curled up around Hiccup, who had fallen asleep with his sketchbook open in his lap. Toothless stirred slightly and opened his eyes a slit but when he saw it was just Astrid, he fell back asleep. The blonde rubbed the ebony dragon on the head and picked up the sketchbook. It was a drawing of the cove and it looked really good. Astrid flipped back a page to find herself and she was surprised she wasn't looking in a mirror. She flipped another page to find a sketch of Toothless sleeping on his rock. Astrid continued flipping pages to look at the other drawings. The book was almost full of drawings and sketches and Astrid was amazed with all of them, though she did find it slightly weird that Hiccup had been drawing her while she wasn't looking. Astrid closed the book and placed it back onto Hiccup's lap. The girl didn't know whether to wake them or just leave and tell Stoick where they were. Hiccup did look cute while he was sleeping. She decided to wake him since it was dusk and with the weather on Berk, it would get cold soon. Astrid shook Hiccup's shoulder.

"Hiccup, wake up."

Hiccup stirred and mumbled,

"Five more minutes."

Astrid rolled her eyes and saw Toothless lift his head, yawning and stretching his front legs like a cat. He saw Astrid having trouble getting Hiccup up and stood, causing the boy to fall on his back and wake up.

"Really Toothless?" Hiccup yawned and sat up, rubbing one of his eyes.

"At least he got you up," Astrid said.

"Oh, hey Astrid didn't know you'd be here," Hiccup said, smoothing his hair slightly since part of it was sticking up.

"Your father was looking for you. He said he was worried because he hadn't seen you or Toothless since this morning," Astrid explained.

"Better head back then. That was good nap though." Hiccup stood and stretched his arms.

Toothless made a noise of agreement and stretched his back legs. Hiccup climbed on and Astrid onto her own dragon. They took off to the village and found Stoick by the docks. The two landed and Stoick sighed with relief.

"I see you found. Where were you?" Stoick asked as the two teens climbed off their dragons.

"At the cove with Toothless," Hiccup said, petting said dragon on the head.

"The cove?"

"The place where I kept Toothless when dragons weren't exactly friends with us," Hiccup explained.

"Oh, well, dinner's gonna be starting soon in the Great Hall and I didn't want you to be missing that," Stoick said, "With your size you need to eat."

"Okay, we'll make sure to get to the Great Hall for dinner," Hiccup said and him and Astrid left the docks.

The two went to the academy since no one was there and just hung out.

"So, is everything good at home?" Hiccup asked.

"Everything's good, it's just the house is a mess but spring cleaning's coming up and I know every Viking on Berk is gonna be cleaning," Astrid said.

"The one week we use to clean everything, including taking a bath," Hiccup said.

"At least it'll start to smell fresh," Astrid said.

"Yeah, and I think it'll go by much faster with the dragons' help."

"Or they could make more of a mess."

"That too."

They heard the bell for dinner and took off on their dragons to the Great Hall where every Viking was going. Astrid and Hiccup got their food and went to the back where their usual table was and found the others already there. Their dragons sat about the area around the table and were eating out of their barrel of fish. Toothless and Stormfly spotted their barrels and went to chow down while Hiccup and Astrid sat down at the table with their friends. Ruffnut scooped some of the stew into her spoon, bent it back slightly, and fired it at her unsuspecting brother. Tuff looked surprised when the stew hit his forehead but then fired back. Ruff ducked and the stew hit Snotlout straight in the face, stopping the Jorgenson boy from flirting with Astrid. Everyone went silent at the table as Snotlout glared at Tuff and clenched his hands into fists.

"Tuffnut, you're gonna get it!" Snotlout screamed and leapt over Ruffnut.

Tuffnut let out a girly scream and ducked under the table, away from Snotlout. Fishlegs quickly got up from the table as Tuff popped up next to him and Snotlout jumped onto the table, rocking it slightly. Tuff got up from the table when Snotlout jumped at him again and ran to the other side. Astrid and Hiccup got up from the table to join Fishlegs and Ruffnut on the sidelines as Snotlout waited on one side of the table and Tuff on the other.

"Will you guys cut it out before you get in trouble?" Astrid asked, annoyed, "I also want to eat my dinner."

"Just let me beat Tuff to a pulp and then you can go back to your dinner," Snotlout growled, looking ready to jump over the entire table and tackle the blonde boy.

"What seems to be the problem?"

Stoick stood with his arms crossed, looking rather annoyed with the two boys.

"This bug flung stew into my face," Snotlout complained, pointing at Tuffnut.

"Only because I was trying to fling it at Ruff because she flung some at me," Tuff accused.

"Don't bring me into this!" Ruff said.

"Ruffnut, Tuffnut, Snotlout, you'll be cleaning the barns for the next week," Stoick ordered.

"But-," Snotlout started but one glare from Stoick shut him right up.

Stoick walked back to his table and all the teens sat back down.

"Great, thanks to you two idiots I'm stuck on barn duty," Snotlout complained.

"Hey, we're on it too!" Ruff said.

"Well, if you guys didn't act like eight year olds, you wouldn't be on barn duty," Astrid said, eating a spoonful of her stew which wasn't knocked over in the commotion.

"Astrid's right," Hiccup said.

Astrid smiled at him for taking her side.

There was, thankfully, no more trouble after that and they all ate their stew in peace. When they finished, they all headed for their houses for the night.

"Hey Astrid, do you wanna join me and Toothless for our night flight?" Hiccup asked since they were the last ones to leave the table.

"Sure, just meet me at my house," Astrid smiled and headed outside with Stormfly.

Stoick saw the whole thing and smiled. Everyone in the village knew Hiccup liked Astrid and Astrid liked Hiccup yet they weren't dating, or were they and they were keeping it a secret? No, Stoick was just being paranoid. The chief left the Great Hall and walked back home. Hiccup left with Toothless after that and flew to Astrid's house. The Viking girl was just finishing unstrapping the saddle on Stormfly when Toothless landed.

"Ready to go?" Hiccup asked.

Astrid nodded and climbed on behind Hiccup. When Toothless took off, Astrid wrapped her arms tightly around Hiccup's waist, causing both of them to blush but it felt right so Astrid didn't let go. It was a crescent moon and in about a week it would be a full moon. The stars shined brightly and there were only a few clouds but they didn't ruin the sky's beauty. Astrid rested her chin on Hiccup's shoulder and sighed.

"The sky sure is beautiful tonight," Astrid commented.

"She sure is," Hiccup said in a slight daze.

"What?"

Hiccup's eyes widened when he realized what he'd just said.

"Uh, I uh, mean it, it sure is," Hiccup stuttered and blushed crimson.

They enjoyed the silence as Toothless flew, beating his wings every once in a while. They finally landed back at Astrid's house and they both got off. Hiccup walked Astrid to the door.

"Thanks for the night flight," Astrid said.

"You're welcome."

Astrid leaned in and kissed Hiccup for a few seconds before pulling away.

"Good night Hiccup."'

"Night Astrid."

Astrid went inside and Hiccup stood on the doorstep for a couple minutes, stuck in a daze.

"Wow," Hiccup whispered and walked down the steps to Toothless, "Let's get home before my dad starts to worry."

Toothless flew to the Haddock household and walked inside with Hiccup. Stoick sat by the fireplace, poking the fire.

"Finally dropped Astrid off back home?" Stoick asked.

"Yeah."

"Have you asked her to be your girlfriend yet?"

"Dad, why would you even-,"

"Hiccup, a girl like that only comes once in a lifetime," Stoick said, finally looking his son in the face.

Hiccup nodded and went up to his room with Toothless following behind. Hiccup removed the flying gear from Toothless and laid down in his bed, blowing out the candle.

"Night bud."

Toothless cooed to Hiccup and breathed flames onto his rock to warm it up before lying down. Hiccup listened to Toothless' breathing as a soothing sound until his eye lids shut, taking him off to dreamland.

"_You better run Hiccup," a voice taunted and Hiccup tried to find who it was coming from, but there was nobody in sight on the old desolate dragon nest._

_It was weird. There were no remains from the dragon queen even though it should've taken years to clean up the bones. The ground began to shake and Hiccup lost his balance, falling down as two stone pillars formed from the ground. Runes made from pure white sand were drawn between the two rock pillars and the ground finally stopped shaking. Hiccup walked over and read the runes._

'_The killer's blood shall be the dead's breath of life.'_

_After Hiccup finished the sentence, blood seemed to drip from Hiccup's hand and onto the runes. He backed away from the runes as the earth began to shake again. The ground cracked where the scarlet runes were. Out it came, head first something Hiccup thought he'd never see again. The Red Death, completely flesh and blood and alive._

"_No," Hiccup breathed._

_This couldn't be real! He and Toothless had killed the Red Death in a big fiery explosion on this very spot. Why was it back? The devil dragon roared and looked at Hiccup with its small eyes. It opened its mouth and Hiccup could see the green gas that ignited the fire in the back of its throat._

Hiccup's eyes snapped opened and he sat up quickly, breathing hard and feeling his body drenched in a cold sweat. He looked around and saw his room, saw Toothless awake and sitting by his bed with worry in his eyes. The boy heard his father rushing up the stairs to his room and then he saw Stoick, his hair not in its usual braid and all ruffled from sleep, finally reach the top of the steps.

"Hiccup, are you alright? I heard Toothless jumping around up here, roaring and probably waking up the neighbors," Stoick said, walking up to Hiccup's bedside.

Hiccup just shook his and Stoick sat down next to the boy on the edge of the bed. Toothless was nudging Hiccup until Hiccup finally responded and laid his hand on Toothless' snout. His heart was still racing.

"Was it a nightmare?"

"Y, yeah."

"Do you wanna talk about it? It helps."

Hiccup nodded his head and took in a couple deep breathes to slow his racing heart and clam his nerves.

'None of it was real,' he said inside his head.

Hiccup told his father everything that had happened, starting with the voice and ending with how the Red Death was about to shoot him with fire.

"It wasn't real, son, it wasn't real. You and Toothless killed the Red Death and it won't be coming back," Stoick reassured, placing his hand on his son's shoulder.

"Yeah it was all just a nightmare," Hiccup said.

"I better be heading back to bed," Stoick said, standing up from the bed.

"Wait."

Hiccup grabbed one of Stoick's fingers with his small hand. Stoick stopped and looked at the boy.

"Can you stay?" Hiccup asked reluctantly.

Stoick nodded.

"Just let me go grab a chair."

Sure it was dark but with the moonlight streaming in from Hiccup's window, Stoick could still see the slight fear in Hiccup's forest green eyes. Hiccup let go of Stoick's finger and he grabbed the boy's desk chair, pulling it to the bedside. He sat down and Hiccup laid back down, resting his head against his pillow. He grabbed his father's finger and Stoick grabbed the boy's small hand in both of his large ones. After maybe an hour, Hiccup fell into a light sleep and Stoick relaxed slightly. Toothless was asleep now on Hiccup's feet. It was a good thing Toothless was here. Stoick leaned back in the chair, closing his eyes. Even when he was asleep, he never let go of Hiccup's hand.

**A/N: So what did you think? Tell me in the comments and there will be more. **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey my amazing readers, sorry I've been gone for a while but I've been busy but I finally got chapter 2 of It's Back typed and ready to go so read it below! There are no spoilers from HTTYD2 either but there is stuff about his mother that I made up except for her appearance. **

It's Back Ch2: A Kiss

Third Person's P.O.V.

Stoick was sore from sleeping in the chair last night. He stretched his back for the third time.

"What's got you all bunched up?" Gobber asked.

"I slept in a chair last night."

"Why would you ever do such a stupid thing?" Gobber questioned.

"Hiccup had a nightmare about the red Death comin' back to life."

"Oh, so he asked you ta stay with him?"

"He was scared Gobber."

"I'm not sayin' you did a bad thing. In fact, you did a good fatherly thing," Gobber said, placing his one hand on Stoick's shoulder and then walked away.

Hiccup yawned again for the third time since he got to the Academy and stretched. Training was going to start in a couple minutes and he actually needed to be awake for it.

"You okay?" Astrid asked.

"Yeah, I just didn't get any sleep."

Astrid crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. She knew Hiccup was only saying part of what happened.

"It was just a nightmare Astrid. Nothing to really worry about," Hiccup said, "Let's start training."

"Fine but this conversation's not over."

Training seemed to drag on for Hiccup. They didn't really have to do anything today so they kept it simple with the game Bad Dragon. Snotlout was the Outcast so Hookfang was the bad dragon. Astrid and Hiccup were the only ones still flying around because they hadn't been tagged. Hiccup and Toothless were doing some lazy flying over the tree tops when Snotlout found them.

"Let's shake them, bud," Hiccup said.

Toothless took sharp turns around the rock pillars and Hookfang tried to copy the turns, nearly running into the pillars as he and Snotlout flew after Hiccup and Toothless. Toothless dove for the forest and weaved through the trees with ease. Hookfang had to fly over the trees thanks to his massive wing span and the trees being closer together but he was able to keep track of the Night Fury and his rider. They were coming towards a clearing and Hookfang dove so Snotlout could tag Hiccup when they flew in but they never came.

"What? Where'd they go?" Snotlout asked, "I can't believe you lost them Hookfang!"

Over in a cave about a minute away were Hiccup and Toothless.

"Think we did a good job, bud?" Hiccup asked, placing his hand on Toothless' head.

Toothless made a sound of agreement in his throat and they took off out of the cave. A little while later, Hookfang roared, signaling that they had gotten Astrid and Hiccup had won the game.

"C'mon bud, let's get back to the academy," Hiccup said and Toothless changed directions.

Toothless flew into the Academy and landed easily next to Stormfly, who was cleaning underneath her wings. Astrid was standing next to her, cleaning off the saddle.

"Hey Astrid," Hiccup greeted.

"Hey Hiccup, Can we talk now that training's over?" Astrid asked.

"Yeah, but let's go somewhere a little more private," Hiccup said.

Their dragons took off and Astrid followed Hiccup to the cove. They landed and dismounted, the two dragons going off to do their own thing. Hiccup walked over to the edge of the small lake and Astrid followed. He told her everything that had happened and when he was finished, they both shuddered. Hiccup was about to turn around and leave but Astrid grabbed his hand. He turned back around and Astrid kissed him. A short, sweet kiss and then hugged him.

"That can't ever happen Hiccup," Astrid whispered in his ear, "And we would never let that happen."

"Thanks Astrid," Hiccup said.

Hiccup stepped back but tripped on a rock, pulling Astrid down on top of him.

"Woops," Hiccup said as the two Vikings blushed a deep scarlet.

Astrid was very close now, her lips just an inch from Hiccup's so Hiccup decided to be daring. He kissed Astrid, soft and sweet but longer than the kiss from before. Astrid was surprised for a couple seconds but then kissed back. This went on for a couple minutes until thunder roared through the sky and rain poured, soaking the two teens in seconds.

"Toothless!"

"Stormfly!"

The two dragons were hiding under a rock awning and refused to come out.

"You guys are unbelievable," Hiccup groaned as he wiped water from his eyes.

"Never knew dragons hated rain," Astrid commented as they ran over to the rock awning.

"No, I think they just want to torture us," Hiccup said and Toothless let out a laugh.

They mounted their dragons and since Toothless couldn't fly with the storm going on, he would have to run back to the village. Astrid said she'd have Stormfly fly alongside them and they started the trek back to the village. The thick forest provided some cover from the rain but they were still drenched and dripping when they got back. Hiccup and Toothless walked back into the Haddock household and Toothless shook himself like a wet dog.

"Hey!" Hiccup exclaimed and blocked his face with his arms.

"Hello Hiccup," Stoick said as he sat down his cup of mead.

"Hey Hiccup," Gobber waved.

"Hey Dad, hey Gobber," Hiccup said and Toothless made a noise in his throat so they would acknowledge his presence.

"Hello to you too Toothless,' Stoick said.

"How come you were out so late?" Gobber asked.

"I was, uh, hanging out with Toothless in the, uh, cove," Hiccup said nervously and he swore Toothless was trying to hold back his laughter.

"With just Toothless?" Stoick asked, raising an eyebrow and a smirk coming to his lips.

"Uh, yeah, just me and Toothless," Hiccup said, a blush coating his cheeks when he remembered what had actually gone on in the cove.

"You know Hiccup, you aren't very good at hiding stuff, except for that Night Fury," Gobber said, motioning to Toothless.

"Is it that obvious?"

"Hiccup, your face is almost as red as Toothless' tail fin," Stoick said, "Were you with Astrid?"

"Yeah."

"As long as you don't get her pregnant before you marry her, you two will be fine," Stoick said.

"Dad!" Hiccup exclaimed with embarrassment and his face got even redder and Toothless laughed.

"Stoick, you're embarrassing the boy," Gobber said, "Go upstairs and get changed before you catch a cold."

Hiccup raced up the stairs to get away from the two laughing men and his laughing dragon. He changed into dry clothes and headed back downstairs. Toothless was eating out of a barrel of fish and Gobber was gone, leaving Stoick alone at the table. Hiccup rubbed the top of Toothless' head.

"Hiccup."

"Yeah Dad?"

"Come with me."

Hiccup followed his father to his bedroom and the large man pulled out a trunk from under the bed.

"I was cleaning out my closet because I was looking for something and found this," Stoick said, opening the trunk.

There were a couple things in the trunk.

"These were your mother's things," Stoick said and Hiccup gasped.

The chief reached in and pulled out a painting. It was a lady with long, brown hair like his own in two long braids that went down about mid-thigh, a narrow face, large green eyes, and she was thin, unlike most of the Viking women on Berk.

"Is this…?" Hiccup started but couldn't finish.

"Yes, that's your mother, Valka. She had Bucket paint a picture of herself for me because she asked me what I wanted for my birthday and I said all I want is my wife's smiling face."

Stoick pulled out another painting, this one of Stoick, Valka, and a small baby boy in the woman's arms.

"That's me."

"Back when you were a small thing. I don't think me and your mother were ever happier when you were born."

Hiccup placed it next to the painting of his mother and Stoick pulled out a beautiful long dress with one part of the sleeves that went to the bottom of the dress.

"Your mother's wedding dress. She looked so beautiful."

Stoick folded the dress and pulled out something wrapped in silk. He unfolded it to reveal a twisted silver bracelet with a Night Fury head on each end.

"This was the bracelet I gave your mother after we married. I know she would want it to go to her son's special girl," Stoick said, placing the bundle in his son's hands.

"But, Dad…" Hiccup started but Stoick stopped him.

"Valka told me that she wanted it."

"Hiccup held the bracelet tightly and hugged his dad.

"Thanks Dad, for showing me this."

"You're welcome, son. Now get to bed," Stoick said, placing everything back in the trunk and closing it.

Hiccup left to his room where Toothless was waiting on his bed.

"Hey bud,' Hiccup said, rubbing Toothless behind one of his ears.

The Night Fury made a purring sound of approval and moved so Hiccup could lie down. Hiccup held up the silver bracelet and the light from the candle glinted off of it, catching Toothless' attention. The dragon stared at the jewelry curiously and sniffed it, making a cooing sound.

"It was my mom's," Hiccup said, "Dad gave it to her when they got married and she wanted me to give it to that special girl."

Hiccup wrapped the bracelet back in the silk and placed it on his bedside table. He blew out the candle and he felt Toothless squeeze into the bed next to him and wrap him into a cocoon.

"Night Toothless," Hiccup yawned and Toothless cooed a good night back.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Here's chapter three! Things get a little weird between Hiccup and another character about three quarters of the way through it so you can skip that if you'd like if you're not comfortable with it. Hope you guys enjoy!**

It's Back Ch3:

Third Person's P.O.V.

Today was the gang's day off from training so they were all off doing their own thing. Hiccup was in the forge with Toothless, checking over old weapons that were in the armory, and Astrid walked in, holding her axe.

"Hey Hiccup," Astrid greeted, "Hey Toothless."

"Hello milady," Hiccup said, placing the sword he was sharpening down on a table, "and happy birthday."

"Thanks Hiccup," Astrid asked, "Fixing old weapons?"

"Yeah," Hiccup said, "Does your axe need sharpening?"

"Yeah, I've been practicing with it out in the woods. Also, it doesn't feel right," Astrid explained.

Hiccup took the heavy axe and nearly dropped it.

"Having trouble there Hiccup?" Astrid asked jokingly.

"No," Hiccup huffed and laid it on the table.

He began inspecting it.

"It looks unbalanced and it does need to be sharpened," Hiccup pointed out.

He placed the blade between two rocks and tightened them so the blade was stuck. He tightened the handle and then removed it from the two rocks. He sharpened it while Astrid looked through the rest of the weapons that lay about the shop.

"Did you make any of these?" Astrid asked.

"A few. Gobber never really allowed me to touch the weapons unless he was out helping during a dragon raid," Hiccup said, "or when Dad was away."

"Oh," Astrid said, grabbing a sword from off another table, admiring it, "This is pretty cool."

"That's a piece of my handy work. Took me a while but I got it done," Hiccup said.

"It's light," Astrid commented.

"But strong. I made it out of some leftover Gronckle Iron," Hiccup said.

Astrid took a couple swings with it and twirled it in her hand.

"I think it would do great in battle," Astrid said, placing it on the table.

Astrid walked around the shop and came to a curtain and pulled it aside, peeking inside. It was a small room with sketches littering the walls.

"Uh, Astrid, that's a, uh, private room," Hiccup stammered, racing over to the room.

"Did you come up with these?" Astrid asked, gesturing to some designs for new inventions.

"Yeah, things to help out with the dragons."

"I gotta say, these are some great ideas," Astrid said, "Stables for dragons would be a good one for all the dragons who don't have homes."

"A lot of villagers were complaining about the dragons that would sleep on their roofs and then they would be woken up early by them banging or roaring," Hiccup explained.

Astrid looked at the other sketches and then her foot hit a small box.

"What's this?" Astrid asked, kneeling down and picking up the box.

"Just a little thing I made when I was bored."

Astrid opened the box and pulled out a dagger. It was made of some type of green and black stone, polished, and the handle looked like twisted rope.

"That's a cool looking dagger. When did you make this?" Astrid asked, taking it out of the box.

"A couple years ago. Gobber helped a bit with the carving so I wouldn't ruin the stone," Hiccup said.

"Where is the stone from?"

"I don't know. Found it on the beach. Gobber didn't even know what it was but he let me keep it and it was one of our little secrets."

"One of them?"

"I took an oath to not say any of these secrets."

"Except for the dagger. Looks like your oath is broken," Astrid said, "so now you can tell me these secrets."

"Gobber's probably gonna come back any minute," Hiccup pointed out.

"Then let's go to the cove where it's private," Astrid suggested.

"Okay," Hiccup said, placing the dagger in his belt and they walked out of the small room, nearly running into Gobber.

"Oh, hey Hiccup, hey Astrid. What were you doin' in Hiccup's workroom?" Gobber asked.

"Hiccup was just showing me some designs he had," Astrid said.

"Really?" Gobber asked like he didn't believe them.

"Yeah, she was really interested in them," Hiccup said, "We're heading to the cove to hang out."

"Okay but don't come back home too late. You're father wanted to talk to you later," Gobber said.

"Okay, we'll be back," Hiccup said and they headed out of the shop with Toothless.

They got Stormfly and they flew to the cove. The dragons went to play and fish while Hiccup and Astrid sat on a log.

"Let's get started," Hiccup said, "There was one time me and Gobber went camping. It was late and we were sitting by the fire and Gobber didn't wash the fishing net and so when he went to bed in our shelter that we built, there was a bear already sleeping in it. Gobber has a fear of bears because of something that happened to him as a kid so when he crawled in the shelter and realized it was a bear, he started screaming and running around, swinging his hand and his prosthetic around and this woke the bear. I had no weapons or anything to frighten the bear so I grabbed a burning stick and waved it around, yelling for it to go away. It left and it took five minutes to calm Gobber down and we had to get my hand bandaged with some ointment because I burned my hand. Then it took ten minutes to get Gobber to bed."

"Wow," Astrid laughed, "For some reason, I can imagine Gobber running around like that."

"He didn't want to seem scared to anyone in the village so he told me not to tell anyone, not even my own father. When I asked what to say about my burnt hand, he said to say that I just accidently burnt myself starting the fire and at that age, I really could've."

Astrid giggled.

"How old were you?"

"I think around seven or eight. I was getting burns all the time from the forge so my dad really thought it was just an accident. He did get a little mad though at Gobber for letting me start the fire."

"So Stoick still doesn't know about this?"

"No. If he ever found out, he would never let Gobber down for it," Hiccup said.

He started on another story and he had told almost all of them by the time the sun was close to setting.

"We should probably head back seeing as your dad wanted to talk to you," Astrid suggested and they stood up from the rock.

"Yeah. I also have a present to give you, a birthday present," Hiccup said, pulling out something wrapped in silk, "Happy Birthday Astrid."

"Oh Hiccup, you didn't have to get me something," Astrid said, taking the package and unwrapping it.

She gasped at the silver bracelet with a Night Fury head on each end of it.

"It's beautiful Hiccup," Astrid said.

"It was my mom's," Hiccup said and Astrid stared at him in shock.

"I can't take this," Astrid said but Hiccup put the bracelet on her right wrist.

"Dad told me that my mom would want me to give it to a special girl," Hiccup started, "Astrid, there's a, uh, question I've wanted to ask you for a while. Will you, will you be my uh, girlfriend?"

"Of course. I've been waiting for you to ask," Astrid said and kissed him.

They pulled away when they heard two roars and looked over to see Toothless and Stormfly wrapped in metal nets.

"Toothless!"

"Stormfly!"

The two teens raced to their dragons as Berserkers jumped into the cove. They pulled desperately at the nets, looking for a way to get the dragons free. Berserkers tackled Hiccup to the ground and Astrid punched one in the face and kicked another in the groin before they managed to restrain her.

"Looks like I've managed to capture the famous Dragon Conqueror," Dagur said as he got right into Hiccup's face, "And his girlfriend too."

"What do you want Dagur?" Hiccup scowled.

"You, of course."

"What, are you gonna sell me to the highest bidder?" Hiccup asked.

"No, I've done some research lately in some ancient tombs and libraries and found a prophecy that had you in it," Dagur explained, "You are the key to bringing the Red Death back to life."

Hiccup froze and Astrid glared harder at Dagur.

"You can't be serious Dagur? Bringing the Red Death back to life would be the stupidest thing to do!" Astrid exclaimed, "We all nearly died last time!"

"But this prophecy says how to control it after resurrecting it. All I need is to spill some of the killer's blood on the island where the Red Death died and it'll come back and follow who ever spilt the blood," Dagur explained, "So I'll be the one who will rule all of the Vikings!"

"Dagur, even if you could bring the Red Death back, it wouldn't follow you. It would kill you and everything in its path. Even though you're called Dagur the Deranged, this is way past deranged, this is suicide! You bring that thing back and we'll all die, including you," Hiccup explained.

"You're just trying to make sure I don't become an evil overlord. Let's go before their beasts attract attention," Dagur said, "Take the Night Fury but leave the Nadder."

"Stormfly!" Astrid exclaimed, struggling against the two Berserkers who held her.

Stormfly and Toothless roared and one took a thick club and hit the both dragons over their heads, knocking them out.

"No!" Hiccup yelled, watching as they lifted his unconscious dragon out of the cove with some pulleys and several men.

Hiccup and Astrid's hands were tied very tightly with rope and they were hauled up and out of the cove. They followed the Berserkers through the forest, purposely going as slow as they could and hoping that somebody would find them.

"Gobber, have you seen Hiccup?" Stoick asked as he walked into the forge.

"Last I saw him, he said he was goin' to the cove with Astrid," Gobber said, "Has he not come back yet? I told him before he left not to come back too late because you wanted to talk to him."

"No and it's dark out. I'm gonna get Thornado and go look for him and Astrid," Stoick said and left.

The Berserker group had to slow a bit when it got dark but they did make it to the beach where the boat was. They dragged Toothless' unconscious body onto the ship and then tossed Hiccup and Astrid on board.

"You know my father will get us back before you can resurrect the Red Death," Hiccup said as he glared at Dagur.

"It's different this time Hiccup. Stoick won't get to you, Berk and the other tribes will become my servants, I'll be their ruler, and I'll have my Night Fury and the Red Death. The best part is that you will finally break," Dagur laughed and the two other teens glared at him, "Get the girl and the Night Fury into their cages! Hiccup, you'll be coming with me."

Astrid and Toothless were taken by some Berserkians and Hiccup was grabbed by Dagur. Dagur led Hiccup into a room near the back of the ship below deck.

"I got you some special restraints," Dagur said, grabbing a leather collar with two leather cuffs attached with a chain.

He tightened the collar around Hiccup's neck to the point that he could at least stick one finger underneath it and then he cut the rope around his wrists. Hiccup used this time to punch Dagur in the face, hurting both Dagur and his hand, and ran for the door. Dagur recovered quickly and tackled Hiccup right before he reached the door. Dagur pulled Hiccup to his feet and pushed his back against the wall.

"Now, now Hiccup, I was hoping you would behave but I'm gonna have to use the other special restraint I got you. That door's locked anyway."

He tightened the leather wrist cuffs and then grabbed something from a box. It was a ring gag with a harness. Hiccup just glared at Dagur as the Berserkian chief turned towards him. He took a step towards Hiccup and Hiccup took a step back.

"Hiccup, you're only making things worse for yourself."

"Dagur, I may be your prisoner but I'm not your slave," Hiccup fumed.

"No Hiccup, Astrid and the Night Fury are prisoners. You are now my personal slave. There's always been something special about you Hiccup. You trained dragons in a world that hates them, you defeated one of the most powerful dragons known to Vikings, defeated Alvin the Treacherous multiple times while being this scrawny teen who can't live up to Viking expectations," Dagur said, getting closer and closer to Hiccup until the teen's back was up against the wall, "And you're cute."

Dagur was quick at putting the ring gag and harness on Hiccup, who was shocked, and grabbing the chain that acted like a leash for Hiccup's restraints. Hiccup tried to get the ring gag off but Dagur yanked his hands down.

"I wouldn't even try Hiccup. There's a special lock that only I have the key for," Dagur said, smirking while Hiccup glared, "And I have a better outfit for you."

Dagur opened a chest and pulled out a white skirt that was split up the sides and really short shorts underneath.

"Put it on."

"What? Why would I ever wear that?" Hiccup said almost incoherently.

"We do have a certain blonde that we could dump in the middle of the ocean," Dagur reminded and Hiccup tensed.

"Fine, give me the stupid skirt."

Dagur handed Hiccup the skirt.

"Turn around," Hiccup grumbled.

"Now why should I do that Hiccup? I'll be seeing you with no clothes on sooner or later."

Hiccup, very reluctantly, removed his clothes except for his underwear. He thought of Astrid's safety the whole time. He could feel Dagur looking all over his bare skin. He finally got on the skirt.

"Very nice Hiccup," Dagur smirked and Hiccup just glared at him, "Let's go, I need to take care of some things."

"I want to see Astrid," Hiccup said, nearly drooling all over himself thanks to the ring gag.

Dagur pulled out a small key and unlocked the gag from Hiccup.

"I guess you could see her before we have our fun," Dagur shrugged, grabbing his leash and pulling Hiccup out the door, "But if you let her take the restraints off, we'll toss her overboard."

He was led to a door further down the hall and Dagur opened the door. There were two cages, a smaller cage with Astrid in it, and a larger cage where Toothless, now awake, was chained and his mouth bound with a leather strip.

"Hiccup!" Astrid exclaimed.

"Astrid," Hiccup breathed, "Toothless."

The Night Fury made a sound in his throat. Dagur opened Astrid's cage and shoved Hiccup into it.

"I'll be back in a while to get you back Hiccup dear," Dagur said and left.

"Oh gods Hiccup. Did he do anything?" Astrid asked, "Did he try anything?"

"No. He only put these restraints on and made me wear this outfit," Hiccup said, pulling Astrid into a hug.

Astrid pulled away.

"What are these marks on your face from?"

"A gag he put on."

"That son of a half troll!"

"Astrid, calm down. I'm not hurt or anything," Hiccup said, putting his hand under her chin and lifting it so she looked into his eyes.

"I should probably get these restraints off," Astrid said, reaching for the buckle on the one on his neck.

"No," Hiccup said, moving her hands away.

"Why Hiccup?"

"He, he said he'll throw you overboard in the middle of the ocean and leave you," Hiccup stammered, "I can't let you die."

"Oh Hiccup," Astrid whispered.

She hugged him and didn't let go.

"Hiccup, how are we gonna escape?"

"Dagur has every key for everything on this ship and an extra for all the keys. I know what the key looks like for the cages, the one holding the chains on Toothless, and the one for his room. Tonight, I'll sneak out of his room with the keys and we'll get out of here on Toothless," Hiccup said.

"Okay," Astrid said, giving Hiccup a short kiss on the lips.

Hiccup scooted to the edge of their cage so he could reach Toothless.

"You know the plan bud?" Hiccup asked and the dragon nodded his head.

Hiccup rubbed his dragon's head and Toothless cooed, wanting nothing more than to curl up around his rider and protect him from Dagur. The door opened and Dagur stood there with a large, evil smile on his face.

"Ready for the fun everyone?"

More of Dagur's men came into the room. Dagur grabbed Hiccup's leash, two men grabbed Astrid, and four men grabbed the bound dragon. They were all led above deck where a large makeshift arena now sat.

"Today, we will be having Astrid, once the second in her dragon killing class, and the famous Night Fury, one of the deadliest dragons, fight!"

The Berserkians cheered but Hiccup's eyes widened and Astrid and Toothless glared at the chief. Astrid and Toothless were shoved in opposite ends of the ring. The chains around Toothless' feet were unbound but his wings and mouth remained bound and Astrid wasn't given any weapons.

"Dagur, you can't have them fight!" Hiccup snapped.

"And why not Hiccup? I am the chief on this boat and they are my prisoners," Dagur said, sitting down in a chair and pulling Hiccup into his lap.

Hiccup struggled to stand back up but Dagur held onto him with a firm grip.

"Remember Hiccup," Dagur whispered into his ear.

Hiccup stopped and tensed up.

"Now, let the fight begin!"

Everyone cheered but Astrid and Toothless didn't move.

"I said fight!"

Astrid and Toothless still didn't fight.

"Fine, I'll make you fight."

Dagur snapped his fingers and one of his men brought out a whip. He pushed Hiccup to the ground on his stomach.

"If you don't fight by the time I get to three, I will whip Hiccup," Dagur said, placing his foot on Hiccup's back so he couldn't get up, "One, two-"

"We'll fight!" Astrid yelled.

Dagur smirked and picked Hiccup up, placing him back in his lap.

"Let the fight begin."

Astrid ran towards Toothless, yelling. Toothless got in a defensive stance but didn't look like he would actually attack Astrid. She leapt onto the dragon's back and hit him all over, but wasn't hitting that hard. Toothless was trying to buck her off even though he could actually reach her body and bite her.

"This isn't real fighting!" Dagur protested and shoved Hiccup back onto the ground.

He raised the whip and Astrid and Toothless froze. All Astrid and Toothless could hear was the sound of Hiccup crying out in pain as Dagur hit him once.

"No!" Astrid screamed and Toothless roared.

"Then fight!" Dagur yelled, raising the whip again.

Toothless retracted his teeth and reached his head back, grabbing Astrid by the waist with his mouth which wasn't open very wide thanks to the leather strip. He gave her a good shake to confuse her and then tossed her to the floor. Toothless was on top of her in less than two seconds baring his teeth and growling but Astrid knew he was faking by the look in his eyes. Astrid gave him a few punches to the face to leave him dazed and then managed to get out from underneath him. Toothless roared and ran after her. Astrid dodged and whenever she could would punch Toothless everywhere. The fighting went on for about thirty minutes before Toothless faked passing out.

"And our victor is Astrid!" Dagur exclaimed and all the Berserkians cheered, "Get them into their cages!"

Astrid's hands were rebound in rope and the Berserkians lead them back down into their cages. When they closed the door to the room, Toothless opened his eyes and stood up, getting close to Astrid's cage, cooing to the girl as an apology if he hurt her in any way.

"It's okay Toothless, just a couple scratches," Astrid said, rubbing Toothless' head, "I'm sorry too."

Food was now being passed out to everyone as they sat about the ship, chatting. Dagur had two bowls, one for Hiccup and one for himself. He wouldn't let Hiccup have his bowl just yet. He ate his food slowly, hoping to taunt Hiccup. Hiccup wasn't very hungry and the new wound on his back hurt but Dagur said he would clean and bandage it back in their room. Hiccup shook at the thought of Dagur touching him but was shocked back into reality when he felt Dagur's arm wrap around his waist and pull him closer. Dagur took the spoon from Hiccup's bowl and scooped a spoonful of the chili they had reheated.

"Open up Hiccup."

Hiccup glared and didn't say a word, keeping his mouth firmly shut.

"Do I need to bring Astrid and Toothless up here for more fighting?"

Hiccup's eyes widened and he opened his mouth just enough for the spoon to go in. he chewed slowly and swallowed, nearly grimacing at the horrid taste of their chili. Obviously, no one knew how to cook. Dagur gave him another spoonful and then handed him a cup of water. Hiccup looked at the water warily.

"Hiccup, we didn't poison your water," Dagur said, "Why would we poison it if we need you alive?"

'Dagur has a point,' Hiccup thought and took a couple sips of water.

"See, no poison," Dagur said, giving him the last spoonful and accidently getting some on the edge of his bottom lip, "Whoops."

Dagur leaned in and kissed Hiccup, licking the chili off and enjoying the taste of Hiccup. Hiccup froze and then quickly pulled away, scooting a few inches.

"I thought we would be at the island by now," Hiccup said.

"We have to make a stop first at another island that we should reach by later tonight or early in the morning."

"Why?"

"Now dear, I can't spoil the surprise," Dagur said, standing up, "Let's get back to our room."

**(A/N: Things are gonna start getting sexual here so you can skip if you want until the next bold typing.)**

Hiccup shuddered and Dagur led him back to the room. He locked the door, left his keys on his desk, and grabbed some bandages and ointment. He spread some ointment on the wound, which helped numb the pain a little, and then wrapped gauze around Hiccup's upper back and chest, leaving lingering touches here and there. When he was done, he wrapped his arms around Hiccup, bringing him into a deep and heated kiss, quickly intruding Hiccup's mouth with his tongue. Hiccup tried to pull away but Dagur kept a firm grip on his smaller body. They somehow got to the bed with Hiccup on his back and Dagur over him, still kissing him. Dagur got his shirt off but thankfully kept his pants on but he was using his hands to explore every inch of Hiccup's body. Hiccup struggled to get out from under Dagur and kept pushing the bigger male's hands away. Dagur eventually removed the leather collar but not the bracelets and then held both of Hiccup's wrists with one of his hands. The other he used to explore Hiccup's body. Dagur began to kiss Hiccup's neck gently and moved down Hiccup's body, going back up when he reached the edge of the white skirt. Dagur used his one hand to reach into the back of Hiccup's skirt and that's when Hiccup managed to knee Dagur in the gut. It didn't hurt much but it made Dagur take his hand out of the skirt.

"I wonder when I'll be able to break you," Dagur whispered with a smirk in Hiccup's ear and then nibbled on it, making Hiccup shudder.

Dagur eventually stopped with the touches and the kissing and brought Hiccup close to him, snuggling his nose into his neck.

"Good night Hiccup," Dagur yawned and was out almost instantly and his grip lessened, making it easier for Hiccup to slip out.

**(Now you may continue.)**

Hiccup removed his restraints, grabbed the keys from the desk, unlocked the door, and left to where Toothless and Astrid were. There were no guards anywhere below deck so it was easy for Hiccup to get to his friends.

"Hiccup?" Astrid asked when he opened the door since their room had no torches or candles.

"It's me," Hiccup said quietly, kneeling next to her cage and unlocking it.

"They took Toothless' flying gear," Astrid said as she crawled out, "and threw it overboard."

"Okay, Dagur said we're supposed to be coming to an island soon so we can get off there and find a place to hide. It'll be our only chance to get away from them and if my father's on their trail, he'll spot their ship at this island and try to find us," Hiccup said, "I hope."

He unlocked Toothless' cage and his dragon nearly tackled him with joy. Toothless sniffed him and snuffed, glaring and nearly growled.

"He smells Dagur, doesn't he?" Astrid asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yeah," was all Hiccup said as they exited that room and headed for the deck, listening for anyone.

There weren't many Berserkians patrolling the deck and even then, the ones patrolling were chatting and gambling by some barrels. An island not too far out was in their sights and the ship was heading straight for it.

'The island doesn't look familiar," Astrid whispered.

"I don't think Berk has ever visited this island," Hiccup whispered back, "It's not that far off and we could swim there."

"Hiccup, you can't swim with your prosthetic," Astrid said.

"Then we'll need something that floats," Hiccup looked around the boat and saw some empty barrels, "Those barrels should float but Toothless will have to swim."

The barrels were close to them and they found some rope to tie around them so they could lower them into the water without making a sound. Hiccup and Astrid managed to lower Toothless down into the water with some ropes and nearly dropped him in because he was so heavy. They jumped into their barrels and Toothless grabbed the ropes tied to them in his mouth. The Night Fury began to swim. It took them about an hour to get to shore and Toothless was tired, he legs aching from the long swim and he collapsed on the sandy beach.

"C'mon bud, we have to hide," Hiccup said, trying to pull the dragon up.

"Toothless, please," Astrid pleaded as she helped get the dragon to his feet and they entered the thick forest.

It was hard to see with barely any moonlight but Toothless helped and their eyes eventually adjusted enough so they weren't tripping every two seconds. They didn't know how long it took but the sun was starting to rise and that's when they found a cave well hidden behind a thick curtain of vines. It was slightly damp thanks to a small stream running through it and Toothless collapsed next to the stream, taking a couple drinks before closing his eyes and sleeping. Astrid and Hiccup drank from the stream and sat next to Toothless, who was so tired that if you shook him, he wouldn't even wake.

"At least we found a place to hide," Hiccup yawned.

"Should we take shifts for sleeping in case they're nearby?" Astrid asked and Hiccup nodded, "I'll take first watch."

"You sure?" Hiccup asked.

"I'm sure. Now go to sleep," Astrid said and Hiccup laid down underneath one of Toothless' wings.

Astrid washed her face in the stream and looked around the cave, not really finding anything interesting so she sat by the sleeping Night Fury, watching as he breathed in and out.

**A/N: Sorry for anyone who didn't like the whole thing between Hiccup and Dagur. I know some people can get uncomfortable with that type of stuff but I gave a warning at the beginning and when to skip in the story. There shouldn't be any more of this stuff between Dagur and Hiccup in the rest of the story but if there is, I will warn you at the beginning and when to skip in the story. Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and remember to review/favorite/follow down below!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Now we come to some interesting things. Hope you guys enjoy and I do not own anything from How to Train Your Dragon. They belong to DreamWorks Animation and Cressida Cowell. I only own some OC characters that will be coming into this chapter. **

It's Back Ch4: Secret Civilization

Third Person's P.O.V.

Stoick landed in the cove and looked around, not seeing Astrid and Hiccup anywhere, only something wrapped in a net. He landed Thornado next to what he now recognized as Stormfly who wasn't moving. He removed the net and the Nadder was still breathing thankfully and he gently nudged her.

"Stormfly?"

The dragon stirred and her eyes widened and she leapt up, tackling Stoick and roaring in his face, preparing to shoot him.

"Stormfly, no!"

Thornado pushed her off and when she realized it was just Stoick, she stopped attacking him and looked for her rider, squawking and flying out of the cove.

"Stormfly, wait!"

Stormfly continued and stopped at the beach, losing the scent of her rider, Hiccup, Toothless, and all the Berserkians. She pawed at the sand and Thornado landed next to her.

"They were kidnapped. Stormfly, let's get back to the village and we'll make plans to find whoever took them."

The Nadder wouldn't fly back and she continued pawing at the sand nervously, knowing it would be like a wild goose chase if she went to find Astrid and incredibly stupid to go alone.

"Alright, stay here and don't go flying off," Stoick commanded and took off as Thornado went as fast as his wings would let him.

They landed outside of the forge where Gobber was still busy cleaning up after Hiccup and sweeping up stray dragon teeth.

"What's wrong Stoick?" Gobber asked when he saw his friend with a worried look on his face.

"They're gone. They were taken."

"What?"

"I went to the cove and found Stormfly wrapped in a metal net, unconscious. When I woke her up, she nearly attacked me and then went to the beach and is waiting there. We need to call a meeting and everyone should be in the Great Hall eating supper," Stoick said, heading back outside the forge and to his dragon.

"Stoick, you said a metal net?"

"Yes Gobber, now let's go."

"Did this net look to be made out of older, more used metal?"

"Now that I think about it, yes, but we need to get to the Great Hall," Stoick said, frustrated.

"It must be Berserkians," Gobber said, "Ever since Dagur became chief, a lot of tribes that they traded for metal with won't trade with them anymore so their nets are usually made of the used metal and weapons out of the better metal they get from some trading."

They both hopped onto Thornado and flew to the Great Hall, bursting through the large doors. Everyone was silenced as they burst in and Stoick rushed to the center of the room.

"Berserkians have taken Hiccup, Astrid, and Toothless. Astrid's dragon, Stormfly, was found unconscious in the cove in a metal net and freaked out when I woke her. Gobber has managed to classify that the net was made by the Berserkians and Stormfly lost their trail when she came to the water. I will take the dragon riders out on their dragons early in the morning to find the ship and I am putting Gobber in charge while I am away."

"Me? Stoick, I'm not a very good leader-" Gobber started but Stoick cut him off.

"Gobber, you have always stepped in when I was not here and you made a good chief every single time. Dragon riders, make sure to be ready at dawn at the beach," Stoick said.

"Why would Dagur want Hiccup and Astrid?" Fishlegs asked.

"He probably wants Hiccup to do something for him so he's using Toothless and Astrid as blackmail," Stoick explained, "but what Dagur wants Hiccup to do, I don't know. Get some rest, you'll need it."

Hiccup woke when he felt someone shaking his shoulder. He yawned and stretched, wincing from the whip lash on his back. He blinked a couple times and looked over to see who shook his shoulder but was shocked to find it wasn't Astrid or Toothless. It was a girl around fourteen or fifteen years old with long blonde hair and big brown eyes. Hiccup yelped, waking Toothless and Astrid, who had fallen asleep on her turn, and causing the girl to take a couple of quick steps back.

"Who, who are you?" Hiccup asked, moving closer to Toothless who bared his teeth and growled.

"I should be asking you that question," the girl replied, "You are trespassing on an island where humans do not belong."

"Look, my name's Hiccup, that's Astrid and this, is Toothless. We're here because we were kidnapped and managed to escape and hide in this cave. We mean you no harm," Hiccup explained.

"Humans are still not allowed," she said, looking them over, "If you are looking for safety, I will talk to my people but you must remain here."

"Well, we weren't planning to leave anytime soon," Astrid said.

"What do you mean by your people?" Hiccup asked but the girl threw something down that created a cloud of smoke and disappeared, "That was strange."

"Really strange," Astrid stated, taking a sip from the stream.

"How come you didn't notice her in the cave? And how long was I sleeping?" Hiccup asked, sitting next to her.

"I, uh, accidently fell asleep," Astrid said with flushed cheeks, "Sorry about that."

"It's okay. All of this has been hard and exhausting," Hiccup said, taking a drink of water.

Toothless yawned and stretched, scratching the rock wall to sharpen his claws. For Toothless, the girl didn't seem like a danger but some people were very good at acting so he stayed cautious. Hiccup cleaned his face and stretched again, wincing.

"You okay?" Astrid asked, concerned.

"Just my wound," Hiccup responded, "It might need to be cleaned but we don't really have anything to clean it with."

Toothless came back with something in his mouth and dumped it in front of Hiccup and Astrid. It was a bunch of thick looking leaves with some type of thick juice in them.

"These are Sanitatum folia, or translated from Latin, healing leaves. The thick syrupy juice inside is great for cleaning wounds and if you eat the leaf and juice, it can be used to fight infections and certain sicknesses. Thanks bud," Hiccup said, hugging Toothless who purred from happiness.

"So I just rub some of this on your wound?" Astrid asked.

"Yeah, it'll sting a bit at first but it'll clean the wound and help with the healing," Hiccup explained.

Astrid removed the bandage and felt guilty. It was her fault that Hiccup had this lash from the whip. She took the juice from the healing leaves and was gentle when she rubbed it on. The leaves and the juice had a bitter smell to them and it made everyone wrinkle their noses. When she finished, she rinsed her hands in the stream and kept quiet, avoiding Hiccup's gaze.

"You okay?" Hiccup asked, placing his hand on hers.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Astrid, you aren't very good at lying," Hiccup commented, holding her hand, "Look at me."

Astrid raised her head and looked into his forest green eyes. He looked into her crystal blue ones and saw sadness? Guilt?

"It's my fault."

"What?"

"That you're hurt. If I had actually tried to fight-"

"Astrid, this is not your fault. I knew you weren't trying to hurt Toothless. Okay? You did not do this to me," Hiccup said, "Dagur is the one who hurt me so it's his fault. Don't go thinking that you hurt me. Were you holding the whip?"

"No."

"Then you didn't hurt me."

Astrid hugged him and he hugged back. Toothless came over and hugged both of them. They stayed that way for a few minutes until Toothless tensed up and growled at something near the back of the cave.

"What is it bud?" Hiccup asked.

A man with honey blonde hair and almost glowing green eyes stepped out from the shadows.

"Who are you?" Hiccup asked.

"I am Beren. You met Haleth earlier and she told us about you. She said you are hiding from kidnappers because you escaped."

"Yes Beren. I'm Hiccup, this is Astrid, and Toothless. Haleth said that if we were looking for safety, to stay here and she would talk to her people."

"When Haleth told us that you had a Night Fury with you and that it was your friend, we knew you had to be friendly," Beren said, "Dragons only trust the people with good souls, ones who plan to help this world. They will never work for the ones who plan to rule it or destroy it unless forced or their soul had been darkened."

"You seem to know a lot about dragons," Astrid pointed out.

"I do because my people help them; keep them safe from those who want to kill them. The last time the Elves checked, Vikings did not like dragons," Beren commented.

"Because I managed to change their mind," Hiccup explained.

Beren asked, "Was that how you lost your leg?"

"Yeah," was all Hiccup said.

"Let us go to the sanctuary," Beren said when he noticed he was going into uncomfortable territory, "I see you have an injury. We have healing elves that can speed up the healing process much faster than the Sanitatum folia."

"Alright, let's go," Astrid said and they followed Beren into the darker parts of the cave.

Beren came to the back wall and placed a hand on the wall. He began to whisper words in some language Hiccup and Astrid had never heard before. A glowing circle grew on the wall and showed a small village full of all types of creatures.

"How did you do that?" Hiccup asked.

"A gate created by the Ancient Elves from long ago to protect our kind and others, only accessible with an Elf's pulse and words every Elf knows," Beren explained, stepping through.

Hiccup and Astrid followed and Toothless went after, somewhat reluctantly. He smelled multiple smells, all from different creatures that he hadn't seen in years and it made him on edge. Astrid and Hiccup gasped from the beauty of the land and all of the creatures they had only heard legends of. Dragons of all different shapes, sizes, and colors walked or flew about, little fairies flew with great speed, unicorns and winged horses were relaxing in the grassy fields and their young played tag, griffins were flying or sleeping in trees, and mermaids and mermen played and lounged near the shores of a large lake.

"Welcome to Lainos," Beren said, "A sanctuary for all mystical creatures that are in need."

"So you protect all of them," Astrid said, "Do they all get along?"

"Sometimes they bother each other but we always solve the issue before it gets too far out of hand," Beren explained, walking down the path that led to the village, "Come, the Elf Council would like a word."

They followed and sometimes had to duck and dodge other creatures that came along. The creatures were happy and peaceful until the group passed them. They were unsettled by humans because humans hadn't always been nice to them. They came to the largest building and walked in, finding some Elves sitting down at a table shaped like a horseshoe. **(A/N: I'm starting at the left end of the table and making my way to the right.) **The one on the left end of the table had curly brown hair, brown eyes, and a red fox sitting in her lap, another female had light red hair, blue eyes, and a barn owl sitting on her shoulder, a female with wavy blonde hair, amber eyes, and a hawk sitting on her shoulder, another female with very light, almost white blonde hair, grey eyes, then an empty seat, a male with silver hair that was short and slicked back, shining blue eyes, dark brown tattoos that looked like flames covering his arms and crawling up his neck and stopped when they curled around his eyes, and a bird that looked like a falcon except it was much smaller with a more narrow and sharp beak and very bright blue and green feathers, a male with dark brown long hair in a braid, green eyes, and a horned owl on his shoulder, and the last one was a male with curly blonde hair that went to his shoulders and light brown eyes with a white fennec fox.

"This is the Elf Council. On the left end is Cuin, Mireth, Arvellas, Rovain who is the queen, Aran who is my son, Arthon, and Alagos," Beren said, pointing to each Elf when he said their name, "And you know me as Beren but I am also the king."

"Wow, uh, thank you Beren for bringing us here," Hiccup thanked, "and all of you for agreeing with him."

"Not all of us agreed on bringing adans into our home," the one named Arthon with the horned owl scowled.

"Arthon, these adans mean no trouble. They are friends with dragons. This one named Hiccup discovered that dragons really meant no harm to his people and convinced them," Beren said.

"What does adans mean?" Astrid asked.

"Humans."

"Haleth told us that you were hiding from kidnappers," Rovain said, "Why did they kidnap you?"

Hiccup looked hesitant to tell them.

"Their chief, Dagur, needed me for a prophecy," Hiccup said.

"What was the prophecy about?"

"That I can bring the Red Death back with the my blood," Hiccup said.

Almost all of the Elves gasped except for the queen, she remained quiet but didn't look surprised.

"This prophecy was told to me by my grandmother when I was just a young Elf. 'The killer's blood shall be the dead's breathe of life'," Rovain said and Hiccup shivered at the words that were from his nightmare, "You have already heard these words?"

"In a nightmare a couple nights back," Hiccup said quietly.

Astrid grabbed his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze and that's when they all saw the silver bracelet.

"Where did you get the bracelet?" Beren asked.

"Hiccup gave it to me. It was his mom's," Astrid explained, twirling the bracelet.

"Your mother was Valka?" Alagos asked, almost standing from his seat and waking his fennec fox.

"Yeah, I don't really remember her but I've seen paintings," Hiccup said, "My dad said she was taken during a dragon raid when I was just a baby."

"We made Stoick the Vast the bracelet when we heard he was going to marry her. It is a good luck bracelet to protect the wearer and their loved ones from death," Rovain said, "We have seen what good it has done. It even saved you, Hiccup, when you were born early."

The trio looked shocked that one little bracelet saved Hiccup when he was born. Beren nodded to Arvellas and the girl left, the hawk flying ahead down a hall at the back of the room. She came back with a woman but it was no ordinary woman. It was the one Hiccup had seen in the painting that was in the chest back at home.

"Mom?"

Valka looked surprised and she moved closer to the boy in a cautious dragon-like fashion, examining his face. Hiccup was too surprised to move or speak. She reached out and ran her finger over the scar underneath his bottom lip.

"Hiccup," Valka quietly said, a huge smile coming to her face and tears of happiness coming to her eyes.

She wrapped her arms around his small frame and Hiccup hugged back, still in shock.

"But everyone thinks you're dead," Hiccup said.

"Dragons are different than what Vikings think they are. They're very sweet creatures and the one that took me wanted me to help protect them," Valka said, "I'm sorry Hiccup that I left you but-"

"It's okay Mom, the dragons needed you but everyone back on Berk, they know dragons aren't bad!"

"What? When did this happen?"

"When Hiccup here became friends with a Night Fury and defeated the Red Death," Astrid said.

"Oh, Mom this is Astrid my girlfriend and this is Toothless," Hiccup said, gesturing to his friends.

"A Night Fury!" Valka exclaimed and kneeled next to the ebony dragon, "Retractable teeth, great eyes for night time, and he's your age."

Valka brushed the frills along the dragon's jaw and he purred. There was something comforting about the woman.

"He may be the last of his kind," Valka said as Hiccup and Astrid looked at the frills, "And what happened here, a trap?"

Valka gestured to the prosthetic tail fin and Hiccup chuckled nervously.

"Sorta. That happened when I shot him down and he got stuck in a cove, but he got me back," Hiccup said, gesturing to his prosthetic leg and rubbing Toothless' head playfully, "Huh bud?"

Valka was shocked but their attention was grabbed when Beren cleared his throat.

"Sorry to end your family reunion but there are more important matters at hand," Beren said as he sat down in the empty seat next to Rovain, "How did you get to the island?"

"Dagur's ship was coming to this island. He said they had to get something before we went back to the old dragons' nest," Hiccup said, "So when it was dark, we rode in some empty barrels and Toothless swam us to shore."

"There are more rules to the prophecy," Rovain said, "Dagur must spill your blood with a special stone found on this island only, a green and black stone called in lapidem autem caede et sanguine or the stone of death and blood. The last of its remains were thrown off this island by Elves who did not want it here anymore."

Hiccup and Astrid tensed and they all noticed. Hiccup pulled out the dagger and most of the Elves narrowed their eyes at the cursed stone.

"I found it on the beach when I was younger and a friend, my blacksmith teacher, helped me make it into a dagger," Hiccup explained.

"Father, we must destroy that rock!" Arthon exclaimed, standing from his seat.

"Aran, sit back down. You should know that the in lapidem autem caede et sanguine cannot be destroyed which was why we threw it into the ocean. All we can do is lock it up and never speak of it to any of the creatures," Beren said, "Please bring me the dagger."

Hiccup walked up and handed it to him. Beren took the dagger and handed it to Arvellas who walked down a different hall with a locked door.

"What are we gonna do now?" Astrid asked.

"Keep you here until Dagur and his men leave the island," Rovain said.

"Now the adans have to be here even longer?" Arthon complained, "All of the creatures here feel unsettled because of them!"

"They have gotten used to Valka, they can get used to Hiccup and Astrid too," Mireth pointed out.

"But Mireth-"

"I know you do not like adans very much but they are not all bad. This young man saw that dragons are different from what he had been told. Now he has made peace with them," Mireth said, "Give them a chance."

Arthon grumbled and his owl glared at Mireth's barn owl.

"Arvellas and Aran, show them where they will be staying and Cuin, Hiccup has an injury that needs to be seen to after they get settled in," Beren said.

"What?" Valka asked and looked Hiccup all over until she saw the lash on his back, "Who did this?"

"Dagur did," Hiccup said.

"I'm going to guess he also made you wear the outfit," Valka said angrily and Hiccup nodded, "Are we talking about Oswald the Agreeable's son?"

"Yeah, he became the new chief of the Berserkians and goes by Dagur the Deranged and he's been going after Toothless. Now he wants to bring back the Red Death so he can rule all the Vikings and dragons," Hiccup said.

They followed the two teen elves out the door and further into the village where there was a smaller hut type building. They walked inside and there were several smaller rooms.

"This is your room Hiccup," Aran said, gesturing to the second room, "And my beautiful lady, this is your room."

"What did you just call me?" Astrid asked, glaring at the Elf prince.

"My beautifu-" Aran started but Arvellas elbowed him hard in the gut.

His bird flew off his shoulder and into Arvellas' hawk's face, making high pitched cawing noises but the hawk just sat there. It then bonked heads with the smaller bird and it flew back, dazed, to his owner's shoulder.

"Are you okay Valaina?" Aran asked, rubbing the bird's head, "Alonnen is a big brute."

"He was only teaching your Humming Hawk to behave," Arvellas said, "Let us get you to Cuin so she can take care of your wound and then we will ask Muin if you can borrow some of his clothes. You are about the same size."

"Who's Muin?" Astrid asked.

"He's the son of Mireth and Arthon," Valka explained, "The girl Haleth you met earlier is the daughter of Cuin and Alagos."

"Are they the only Elf children right now?" Astrid said.

"They are the youngest and they share the same birthday. When they turn sixteen, their animal companion will come to them and stay with them for life," Aran said.

"Do they know what animal they'll get?" Hiccup asked.

"No, it is a surprise and those of royal blood get the more magical creatures," Arvellas answered, "Beren and Rovain each have winged horses and Aran has a Humming Hawk. Your animal companion has a very similar personality and the more you learn from each other, the better you work together."

"Sounds like mine and Toothless' relationship," Hiccup said, rubbing said dragon's head.

They came to a clearing where Haleth and a boy her age sat, playing with some fairies.

"Muin," Arvellas said and the boy with red hair turned his head and looked at them with large green eyes, "One of our guests has an injury that needs healing."

He nodded and stood. Haleth stood too and followed him to a small hut in the distance. The fairies they had been playing with flew in front of the three new people's faces, talking quickly in their fairy language. Toothless glared at the little people when they tickled his ears and tried to open his mouth. One sat on Hiccup's shoulder and many others were interested in Astrid, playing with her hair and trying to undo it from its braid.

"Knock it off," Astrid growled, not noticing as a couple started to put flowers in her hair.

The fairy on Hiccup's shoulder was now braiding his hair in little braids. By the time they reached the hut, Hiccup's hair was completely braided and Astrid had flowers everywhere.

"Shoo fairies," Arvellas said and they instantly dispersed.

Astrid pulled all the flowers out and dropped them to the ground and Hiccup tried to get the braids out but with little success.

"Do you need help?" Astrid asked.

"Just a little," Hiccup said and Astrid undid the braids with ease.

Muin combined different types of plants and liquids into a bowl and whispered a few words. The paste glowed for a few seconds before it went back to its normal color. He spread it over the lash and it healed in a minute, leaving a small white scar.

"That's really cool," Astrid breathed and Toothless smiled, his tongue flopping out.

"I can show you some more cool things," Aran smirked, putting his arm around Astrid's shoulders.

This time it was Astrid who elbowed him in the gut, leaving him winded.

"I think Valka can show us around," Astrid said, grabbing Hiccup's hand, "Will Beren mind us walking around?"

"Of course not," Arvellas said and they walked out the door.

"I might punch Aran," Astrid growled.

"You're not alone," Hiccup said and Astrid smiled, pecking his cheek.

The fairies from earlier came back but this time they had clothes for Hiccup. It was just a simple white tunic, brown pants, and brown boots.

"Thank you," he said and the fairies giggled.

They placed a flower crown on Hiccup, Astrid, Valka, and Toothless and flew off. Toothless went cross-eyed trying to see the new object on his head and they laughed when he fell over. They went back to Hiccup's room where he changed and then walked about Lainos. They came to the field where the unicorns and the winged horses rested and grazed. A little unicorn came running and ran into Hiccup, knocking the boy over. Toothless got angry and nearly growled and attack the little creature but Astrid stopped him. Hiccup petted the baby on the head and it blinked and ran back to its mom.

"Lots of the younger creatures have a bad habit of running into Elves or other creatures," Valka said and they headed toward the lake.

Mermaids and mermen lounged about on rocks or on the shore, chatting or napping. Hiccup and Astrid had always thought that merpeople never existed but now they knew that they were real. One mermaid with long black hair, brown eyes, and a violet tail spotted Hiccup and smiled.

"Hello, what is your name?" she asked Hiccup.

"I'm Hiccup," he answered, "And you are?"

"Dusk," she replied, flicking her tail, "I never get to see human boys."

"And I never get to see mermaids or mermen," Hiccup said.

"Do you know how to swim?" she asked and Hiccup gave her a confused look.

"Well, I can't because of my prosthetic," Hiccup said, motioning to the metal foot.

Dusk latched onto his arm and pulled him into the lake. Toothless roared and raced in after them. Astrid kicked off her boots and jumped in, following the dragon who moved fluidly in the water. Valka raced off to find one of the Elves. Toothless kept an eye on the purple flicking tail and swam as fast as he could. Astrid managed to catch up and pulled herself onto Toothless' back. The mermaid disappeared with their friend into a cave and Toothless squeezed into the entrance. They came out into a cavern where they could breathe and Astrid took a deep breathe. Dusk had Hiccup sitting on a rock next to her, and she was too close for both Hiccup's and Astrid's com fort. She all of a sudden bit Hiccup's arm and he winced, trying to pull away. Astrid glared and released a war cry before jumping off of the Night Fury's back and onto the rock next to Hiccup. She kicked Dusk off the rock and they both jumped onto Toothless' back. He swam back out the entrance with an angry mermaid following. She now had multiple rows of very sharp teeth, a dorsal fin, a dull ugly grey tail with peeling scales, grey skin, and eyes full of blood lust. She caught up to Toothless and bit his tail, sucking blood. Toothless roared and shot out of the top of the lake, shaking her off and flinging her onto shore. She hissed, smoke rising from her skin and leaving ashes on the sand. Toothless roared and hid Astrid and Hiccup behind him.

"Blood Mermaid," Beren frowned, pulling out his sword.

"What?" Valka asked.

"A Blood Mermaid. Mermaids cursed or created by dark magic. They suck the blood of other creatures. Merpeople bitten by a Blood Mermaid become one themselves, but humans and other creatures become terribly sick and die unless treated in time," Beren said and then noticed the blood running down Hiccup's arm and Toothless' tail, "Hell."

The Blood Mermaid was screeching and hissing, still smoking from the sun. She turned her brown eyes towards Astrid and screeched very loudly, her eyes narrowing. Astrid glared back and Dusk leapt through the air and pinned Astrid to the ground. She scratched at her with her claws and kept trying to bite her neck, missing by only inches. Beren jumped over Toothless and swung down, slicing her head off and sending black blood everywhere, including Astrid who was now soaked. She pushed the corpse off of her and stood on shaky legs. Hiccup hugged her and she hugged back.

"We have to get you and Toothless to Mireth and Arthon," Beren said, "You were bit."

"What?" Hiccup asked and noticed his dragon's tail bleeding, "Oh gods, Toothless."

Toothless whimpered and licked Hiccup's wound. They ran to the hut where Hiccup was healed earlier and Beren ran to the room where the Council was. Hiccup began to feel sick when they reached the hut and leaned against the wall.

"Hiccup?" Astrid asked, concern filling her eyes.

His head was spinning and he felt incredibly weak to the point where standing was a struggle. Valka helped lay him on a bed and they all got Toothless onto another. Toothless whined and wanted to be next to Hiccup but they held him back. Mireth worked on Hiccup and Arthon worked on Toothless, working as fast as they could.

"Their bodies' temperatures are going down," Mireth said, "Beren, get Muin."

The king nodded and raced out. Astrid stood by Hiccup, running her fingers through his hair and doing anything she needed to do and Valka tried to comfort Toothless but the Night Fury only wanted Hiccup to be okay. The red headed boy raced in and got to work, mixing things and getting supplies. Hiccup's body felt like it was on fire and his head was spinning but all he could think about was Toothless.

"Toothless," Hiccup mumbled, eyes slipping open and closed.

"Expélle eos de tenebris magicae (Rid them of the dark magic)," Mireth whispered over a two bowls of blue liquid and handed one to Arthon.

Hiccup and Toothless drank the liquid from the bowls and in a few minutes, their bodies began to return to a normal healthy state. Astrid and Valka breathed a sigh of relief. Toothless woke up, still a bit groggy, and crawled onto Hiccup's table and curled up around him, falling back into a peaceful slumber.

"They should wake up some time tomorrow," Mireth said, "Let us get you cleaned up."

Astrid looked down at her clothes and noticed she was still covered in black blood, now dried and smelling like ashes.

"Thank you," Astrid said to the three Elves and they nodded.

Astrid was led to her room where a nice hot bath was prepared and new clothes laid on her bed by the fairies. She washed herself well with the soap that smelled like roses and dressed in her new clothes which consisted of brown shorts that stopped mid-thigh, brown boots, and a green tunic with removable silver armor chest plate starting above her breasts and stopping at her hips.

"I like this," Astrid smiled and caught sight of the silver bracelet on the bedside table.

She put it on and looked at the door when she heard a knock. She opened the door to reveal Aran with a bouquet of flowers.

"I heard what happened," Aran said, "And I wanted to check on you."

"That's sweet Aran but-," Astrid started but Aran cut her off.

"I also got you some flowers," Aran began, "And your hair looks beautiful when it is down."

"Thank you Aran but I like someone else," Astrid said, absentmindedly playing with her bracelet.

"It is Hiccup, is it not?" he asked, looking a little sad.

"Yes Aran but you'll find someone who loves you back," Astrid said.

"I know but it does not mean that I cannot stop trying to woo you over," Aran said while walking away and Astrid groaned.

Arthon and Alagos came carrying Toothless and Valka was carrying Hiccup. Astrid opened the door to Hiccup's room and she laid Hiccup on the bed and the dragon was laid next to him.

"At least he's okay now," Astrid said and Valka smiled.

"Yes, I don't want to lose my son again," Valka said, sitting on the edge of the bed and moving the hair out of his eyes, "I remember how much hair he had as a babe. No matter how many times you would fix it, it would end up sticking out every which way and be a mess."

"It still does that sometimes," Astrid chuckled, remembering how many times she would see Hiccup walk into the Great Hall for breakfast and random pieces of hair would be sticking up.

"So is it true?" Valka started, "Are dragons really allowed on Berk?"

Astrid nodded and a smile grew on Valka's face.

"Was it because Hiccup killed the Red Death?"

"Yeah, Stoick finally began to realize that they weren't bad after Toothless saved Hiccup from being burned and falling to his death," Astrid explained, "That was how he lost his foot."

Valka was silent for a few minutes, taking in all the new information.

"Do you have your own dragon?"

"She's a Deadly Nadder named Stormfly," Astrid said, "She's mainly a light blue with some yellow here and there and a white belly."

Concern instantly swept over Astrid's face.

"I wonder if anyone found her. Dagur left her wrapped in a net unconscious when he kidnapped us."

"Stoick must have found her," Valka reassured.

"Hiccup is hoping Stoick finds Dagur's ship by the island and searches the island," Astrid said, "I know Stoick is searching for us, but I hope he doesn't get into trouble."

"Is he coming here by dragon?" Valka asked.

"Yeah, he has a blue Thunderdrum named Thornado," Astrid said and Valka laughed.

"The thought of Stoick actually riding a dragon is very funny considering he hated them with a passion."

Valka yawned and stood from the bedside.

"I'm going to bed. Goodnight Astrid," Valka said.

"Goodnight Mrs. Haddock."

"Please Astrid, just Valka," Valka said and left the room.

Astrid looked at Hiccup's and Toothless' peaceful slumbering forms. Astrid squeezed into the bed next to Hiccup under the covers since she didn't want to be alone in the other room and shut her eyes, falling into a peaceful sleep.

The teens and their dragons met with Stoick and Thornado at the beach and they took off, hoping to find something soon so they could get Hiccup, Astrid, and Toothless back as soon as possible. Stormfly flew with them, seeming the second most determined out of everyone. They flew for hours and saw Dagur's ship at an island Stoick had been to only once many years ago.

"Lainos," he whispered, memories he had locked away came back fresh as if they had just happened.

"What are we gonna do Chief?" Snotlout asked, all the teens looking at him.

"They're getting off but they don't have Hiccup, Astrid, or Toothless with them so they must be searching for them," Stoick said, "We'll fly to the other side of the island so we're not spotted and split up. Avoid the Berserkers at all costs."

"Yes Chief!" the teens said and flew down to the other side.

"How did they escape if you three were on guard?" Dagur asked, nearly growling at the three Berserkers, "Unless you weren't doing your job?"

The three Berserkers cowered at their chief's glare and one took off running to jump overboard but Dagur pulled out a throwing knife and hit his heart, killing him instantly. The other two cowered even more.

"Feed these two to our dragon prisoners. Men, get ready to search the island," Dagur ordered and everyone bustled about, afraid to have a knife sticking out of their back.

**A/N: Sorry this took so long guys but this had so much going on that I was trying to figure out how to put it all together and new ideas came along while I was typing so I added them in. I was also afraid that it wasn't going to be good enough because I have that constant fear that nothing I do is good enough so that's usually another reason some chapters take so long to be posted. Remember to leave comments on what you think so far!**


	5. Chapter 5

It's Back Ch5: Exploring

Third Person's P.O.V.

Hiccup woke up with Astrid wrapped in his arms and Toothless curled up around them. Astrid's hair was down and wavy and smelled of roses. Hiccup ran his fingers through it and smiled. He was surprised her hair was down seeing as she never wore it down. He also noticed she was wearing a new outfit. The blonde stirred and blue eyes opened.

"Good morning milady," Hiccup whispered in her ear and Astrid yawned.

"Morning," Astrid said, "How are you feeling?"

"Much better," Hiccup said, "How're you feeling bud?"

Toothless lifted his head and licked the side of Hiccup and Astrid's faces, which caused the two to groan, and Toothless laughed.

"I take it he's feeling better," Astrid said and wiped the dragon slobber off her cheek.

"And I think he's hungry," Hiccup laughed as the Night Fury gave him puppy dog eyes to show his hunger, "Let's go."

They walked out of the building and towards the main building where the Elves and Valka were eating breakfast. Arvellas got them some food and Toothless some fish and they ate happily, chatting with some of the Elves and Valka.

"Beren thought it would be a good idea to explore the rest of Lainos for any other dangers," Valka said, "I thought you would like to come and have a look around. You may be staying here a while."

"That sounds fun," Hiccup turned to Astrid, "What do you think?"

"I've been wanting to look around," Astrid smiled, "And Toothless would like to stretch his legs."

Toothless looked up from his plate of fish at the mention of his name and they laughed at the mouthful of fish he had. Haleth and Muin came up, each with a fish. This caught Toothless's attention and he stared at them with large, pleading eyes. They happily gave him the fish and petted him while he ate them. Muin climbed onto his back and scratched behind his ears. Toothless purred and laid down. Haleth and Muin scratched his scaly belly, causing his tongue to flop out of his mouth.

"Toothless sure is enjoying the attention," Hiccup watched as Toothless fell asleep from the belly rub.

Breakfast was over and they followed Beren, Aran, Arvellas, and Cuin further into Lainos. It was mainly forest area with small clearings here and there. Many creatures filled the forest; deer, unicorns, pegasi, faeries, and many more.

"What's that?" Hiccup asked.

Ruins of what looked to be an old castle stood in a sunny clearing, covered with vines of ivy and morning glories. They looked like they would fall over with one small touch.

"Ruins of an old Elfish castle. There are lots of ruins in this forest," Beren explained, "They were here long before we came to Lainos but there is very little history we could find on them."

"Interesting," Hiccup said.

They continued on the trail and saw more ruins, some in better conditions than others. Rainbow colored fish swam along a stream and danced in their own special way. Faeries tried to put flowers in Hiccup's and Astrid's hair again and Astrid glared at any that got close to her but quit trying to stop them.

"They are welcoming you to Lainos," Arvellas said and smiled at a little faerie that landed on her shoulder, "They love newcomers."

"They also seem to love putting flowers in people's hair," Astrid said.

"It's just what they do," Hiccup said, "They enjoy it."

Two faeries reached into Hiccup's vest and pulled out his leather book and flew off.

"Hey!" Hiccup ran after them.

The little winged people were fast, that's for sure, but Hiccup managed to keep up. He was right on their tails when he jumped and grabbed hold of the book. There was that moment of success but that disappeared when Hiccup felt himself falling.

"Hiccup!" Astrid screamed and Toothless roared.

All Hiccup saw was a muddy ground zooming towards him and then complete blackness. He felt scales, warmth, and a strong beating heart against his back. Impact came and jolted him and he had a sense of tumbling but it stopped. A coo came from above and sunlight met Hiccup's face, blinding him for a second.

"Thanks bud," Hiccup rubbed the dragon's head, "Are you hurt?"

The ebony dragon shook his head and he shook his body.

"Hiccup? Toothless? Are you guys alright?" Astrid called.

"We're fine!" Hiccup yelled back.

"We will get you out!" Beren told them, "Stay where you are!"

"Alright!"

And then they were gone. Hiccup took in his new surroundings. There was a small lake with a waterfall flowing over the edge. The cliff almost circled the entire area and trees grew here and there.

"Oh those stupid faeries," Hiccup grumbled, "Wait, where's my book?"

They searched the muddy ground and found it among some bushes. It wasn't damaged but had a little mud and faerie dust on the cover. Hiccup wiped it away and stuffed it back in his vest pocket. He was going to have to be more careful with those faeries. Toothless growled and Hiccup followed his line of sight. A stag with a beautiful light brown coat and large horns stood by a clump of bushes near the edge of the cliff circle. It was staring right at Hiccup with large brown eyes. Hiccup looked him right in the eyes and felt a pull from it. A voice in the back of his mind told him to look away but he couldn't. One step after the other and Hiccup was heading right for the stag. Toothless stood in front of him and cooed, trying to draw his attention away from the mysterious animal that seemed to call to him. Toothless roared and shoved Hiccup back, taking a glance at the stag. It looked at the dragon now and seemed to be calling him. The Night Fury shook his head to shake off the control but it wouldn't go away, like it had buried itself within his mind. Toothless followed Hiccup as they followed the stag away from the lake and deeper into the forest.

Astrid followed the Elves towards the path that led towards the lake Hiccup and Toothless were waiting at. The flowers that were in her hair were now gone, strewn about on the forest floor.

"Why would those faeries do that?" Aran asked, "For as long as I can remember, no faerie has ever done that."

"They were not acting as themselves," Beren said.

"You mean they were possessed?" Cuin asked.

"Maybe. Faeries may be mischievous but they would not pull a prank that would put a life at risk."

Arvellas yelled and fell to the ground, grasping both sides of her head.

"Arvellas!" Aran exclaimed and kneeled next to her, "What is it?"

"Dark, evil serpent," the she Elf gasped out, "wanting Hiccup and Toothless. Must get to old temple."

She screamed out in pain and collapsed to the ground.

"She fainted," Aran scooped her up into his arms and Alonnen landed on Beren's shoulder, cawing and flapping his wings.

"Follow Alonnen," Beren ordered, "I have a feeling Hiccup and Toothless are not at the lake anymore."

They followed the stag for a while, a little voice in the back of their minds saying to fight the control but it was snuffed out like a candle in a strong wind. The forest seemed to get darker and there were less creatures happily going about. Creatures stared out of the shadows and wanted to eat the easy prey in front of them except they found they couldn't. A dark force surrounded them, scaring off even some of the scariest creatures away in search of another meal. A small stone building covered in moss, vines, and shadows appeared in the gloom and the stag led them inside. Cobwebs and dirt covered every inch of the walls and floors with a thick coating and the smell of rotting flesh became really strong. They walked into a chamber where something dark, long, and scaly sat curled up in a ball. The stag disappeared like mist but the control remained over the two. The thing heaved itself up and out of its curled up position and moved around Hiccup and Toothless.

"_Such wonderful prey," _Hiccup and Toothless heard in their minds_, "The human is strong willed and loyal with a large heart while the Night Fury is similar except he is not as accepting. You two are outcasted by the humans because you are different."_

The serpent moved closer to Hiccup so Hiccup could smell its breathe.

"_You have done no good, burdening the Elves with your trouble. Oh Hiccup, you will always mess things up. Like with your father. You have disappointed him since the day you were born. You are a weakling, a screw up, a useless. You are not a Viking. You don't deserve to be with Astrid, you don't deserve to have friends, you don't deserve to be a Viking, not the future chief."_

Fear pricked Hiccup's heart as he listened to the serpent talk. It was all true. _'It's what's inside that he can't stand', 'Stop trying so hard to be something you're not', 'Stop being all of you', 'Hiccup the Useless', 'You're not a Viking, you're not my son'_. Tears rolled down his cheeks as old memories resurfaced and realization kicked in as he collapsed to his knees.

"_All alone are we Night Fury? You can't be friends with a human. You deserve to be all alone, to die all alone! Your kind is meant to die! Don't you see? You only bring danger to the human boy. In fact, if you two had never become friends, Dagur wouldn't be after your precious boy. He would be safe and sound back on Berk, learning how to become the future chief of Berk. All you do is endanger other creatures. Your kind is dead because of you!"_

Toothless let out a broken roar and collapsed to the floor. Hiccup looked down at the dragon but couldn't move, couldn't comfort him, only watch as his dragon, his friend laid there crying out.

"_See Hiccup? You only bring trouble to others. Your Night Fury is broken because you brought him to this cursed island! It's all your fault!"_

"_Don't you see Night Fury? You've hurt the boy. It's all your fault!"_

"Stop it!" Hiccup screamed and curled up into a ball on the floor.

"_Your fault."_

"Hiccup!"

The group came running through the entrance and the control weakened on the two who had fallen victim. Cuin pulled out her bow and shot at the serpent's face, landing a hit in one of its eyes. He roared in pain and swept at her with his tail. She dodged and Beren ran towards him. He dug his sword deep in the side of his neck. Blood as black as night flowed out and onto the floor. The serpent reeled back and lashed out at the king. He dodged and aimed elsewhere.

"Hiccup, wake up," Astrid shook Hiccup's shoulders, "Please, we need to get you two out of here."

Hiccup slowly began to escape the control and shook his head.

"Toothless, how's Toothless?" he asked, trying to pull himself to his feet but he felt completely drained.

Toothless cooed and managed to stand and collapse next to Hiccup.

"C'mon, we need to get you guys out of here," Astrid heaved Hiccup to his feet and put his arm over her shoulders, "Aran, I can't get them out of here by myself and Cuin and Beren are busy!"

"We'll get Toothless," Aran said with Arvellas following.

"Can you manage?"

Arvellas nodded and they lifted Toothless up from the floor and towards the exit. Hiccup looked back towards the fight and saw the serpent about to strike Cuin.

"No!"

With renewed strength, he ran as fast as he could towards Cuin and shoved her out of the way, taking the blow. He felt the fangs graze his flesh and the poison sink into his veins as he collapsed to the ground. His senses dulled and he could barely tell Astrid was there yelling at him to stay awake. He could barely feel someone picking him up or the giant thud as something large fell to the ground. And then everything went dark.

Stoick walked into the cave with the rest of the teens and sat down in the middle and petted Thornado's head.

"What are you doing?" Snotlout asked.

"Now is the time we wait."

"Boring!" Ruffnut exclaimed and bonked heads with Tuffnut, "When do we get to set stuff on fire?" 

"Excuse me Mr. Haddock but what are we waiting for exactly?" Fishlegs asked.

"I have some old friends that will meet us here and will help us," Stoick explained, "Just keep quiet. Dagur probably has scouts all over the island right now."

The crew could tell Dagur was getting angry. He had killed three more men when they came back and said they had found no trace of his escaped prisoners. One was drowned, one had his eyes gouged out slowly and a dull knife was used to tear his flesh apart, and the third, well, none of the crew could keep watching because his death was so gruesome. If they didn't find the prisoners soon, the whole crew would be dead before they returned.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own How to Train Your Dragon.**

Chapter 6: Meeting

Third Person's P.O.V.

Hiccup was still unconscious several hours after the attack from the serpent. Arvellas had passed out earlier because of the dark, dangerous magic radiating off of the serpent and Toothless had not rested. The dragon had chosen to pace in front of the bed Hiccup was sleeping on in the medical hut back at the village. The poison from the serpent's fangs was made from an old and very powerful magic and had taken most of Mireth's and Arthon's magic healing abilities to get it all out. After Arthon had heard how Hiccup had saved Cuin, he didn't glare at them anymore or treat them like prisoners.

"Why have there been so many dark creatures lately?" Haleth asked her father.

"I do not know young one," Alagos answered, moving some curly blonde hair out of his face, "but the queen and king are taking care of it."

"Will you and Mother have to leave and fight again like when I was an infant?"

"We might Haleth," Alagos kneeled down so he was eye level with her, "If the king and queen need our help, we will be there."

"What does she mean by 'again'?" Astrid asked.

"Many years ago, we lived in a place like this one that was also named Lainos but humans came and killed many Elves. Beren called for retreat when he saw how few of us were still alive. After a long journey with help from Stoick, we came here and we just knew it was safe," Cuin explained.

"Is that why Arthon doesn't like humans?" Astrid asked and reached out to Toothless to stop his pacing with one hand, and the other held Hiccup's hand.

"Mireth had just had a newborn shortly before everything happened, a beautiful baby girl named Alyndra. Mireth had been resting at home with Alyndra because the labor had been hard on her and Arthon was working. That was when the humans attacked our village with hundreds of men, so many that even with all the Elves we had at the time, we were still overrun. Mireth hid in a closet with Alyndra and Arthon came to get them to safety. Several humans came and Mireth had left Alyndra hidden to help Arthon. One of the men got past them and found her and…" Cuin couldn't finish the story but Astrid knew what happened.

"Did they attack for any reason?" Astrid asked, managing to get Toothless to lie down.

"No, they were only seeking to destroy and conquer," Alagos clenched his fists, "That is why they are so protective of Muin."

"For the longest time, Hiccup and I were told that Valka was taken away by a dragon," Astrid explained, "Hiccup was only a baby at the time but Valka explained how she knew that dragons weren't dangerous. That's why Stoick didn't like them for a long time."

Astrid's eyes widened and she stood up.

"Stoick doesn't know though," Astrid whispered, "You said Stoick knows where this place is?"

"Yes, he was with us when we found it," Alagos said.

"Stoick must have reached the island by now and is probably waiting for us," Astrid headed towards the door but looked back at Hiccup, "I don't want to leave him."

"I will talk to Beren about having someone look and see if he is waiting," Cuin headed over and placed a hand on Astrid's shoulder, "You need to rest too. Hiccup will be fine, he is in good hands."

"I know but I want to be here when he wakes up," Astrid seated herself on the edge of the bed and ran her fingers through his hair.

Cuin left to talk to Beren and Haleth followed her. The girl was used to going out into the cave and exploring. The king was in the meeting room with Rovain.

"How is he?" Beren asked as he stood from his chair.

"Still sleeping, there has been no change," Cuin reported, "Astrid had brought up the fact that Stoick might be waiting in the cave. Should we send a party to get him?"

"Yes, I will go with Alagos to meet him," Beren walked out of the room and to the med hut.

The curly headed Elf was waiting by the door. Haleth ran up to her father and told him how he would be going to the cave with Beren to see if Stoick was there.

"Can I come?" she asked.

"Haleth, with all the things that have been going on, I want you to stay here where it is safe," Alagos kneeled down, "I do not want to lose you."

Haleth nodded and hugged her father before they headed off. The two older Elves noticed how skittish the creatures were and how a gloom hung over the place.

"Do you have any idea as to what is going on?" Alagos asked his king.

"I know the prophecy is going to come true, Alagos," Beren admitted, "Rovain knows it too. That dragon, even though dead, is doing something with dark magic. I do not know what. Arvellas told me after she had awoken that she has been having nightmares; a hero's funeral but she could not tell for whom and a crazy Viking with lots and lots of blood covering him. Everyone is scared but there is nothing I can do about it."

"It seems to be taking the greatest toll on you, Beren," Alagos pointed out, "No matter what happens, do not blame yourself. I know you see everything as your responsibility since you are king, but we can help."

"Thank you, Alagos," Beren put a hand on his friend's shoulder.

They came to the stone wall and Beren whispered the ancient words. The portal shimmered and they stepped through. Stoick along with many teenage Vikings and dragons sat in the middle of the cave. The teenage Vikings looked bored as they talked to the dragons who looked equally bored except for a bright blue Deadly Nadder. All of the dragons simultaneously froze at the scent of new comers and the Monstrous Nightmare began to catch fire.

"Stoick," Beren announced himself as they stepped out of the shadows.

"Beren?" the chief stood and stepped forward.

"It has been a long time," the king smiled, "We have your son and his love, along with another Viking."

"You have them? Thank the gods," Stoick let out a deep breath, "Who else do you have?"

"Someone you have not seen for several years," Beren said and motioned for them to follow.

"Stoick, how do you know Elves?" Snotlout asked as he calmed down Hookfang.

"The last time I checked, Elves weren't real," Fishlegs spoke up.

"Yeah, Elves are fairytales," Ruffnut said.

"I miss fairytales," Tuffnut sighed, "Remember when Mom would read them to us?"

Alagos motioned for the group to follow as they went back through. If the animals were skittish before, they were even more freaked out now. The twins had tried to grab a unicorn, Snotlout tried to ride a griffin, and Fishlegs didn't try anything but all the animals loved him. When Stormfly smelled her rider, she raced off down the trail and took to the air.

"Stormfly!" Stoick yelled and was about to run after the dragon but Beren stopped him.

"Is that Astrid's dragon?"

Stoick nodded.

"She just smells her rider," Beren reassured, "She will not cause any trouble. Besides, that girl needs something to cheer her up."

"Why? What happened?" Fishlegs asked as he pried a fairy out of his hair.

"Creatures created by old, dark magic have been showing themselves lately. The latest one was a dark serpent that must have sensed Hiccup and Toothless when they were separated from us when we were showing them around and when we went to rescue them, Hiccup saved one of our own and was bit," Alagos explained, "It took most of the strength of both of our healers to get the poison out."

"Is he okay?" Stoick asked.

"He was sleeping the last time I saw him," Alagos reported, "Astrid wanted to stay behind for when he wakes."

"That boy, always doing stupid things," Stoick chuckled.

The small village came into view and they headed for the med hut where Haleth was waiting outside. Her eyes widened and she smiled as she raced forward and hugged Alagos.

"Father, there was a crazy Deadly Nadder that was really pretty that went running inside," Haleth said, "when I went inside, Astrid was hugging her and talking to her like she was afraid she wasn't going to see her again."

"How is Hiccup doing?" Alagos asked.

"He woke up for a few minutes from a nightmare but fell back asleep after Valka and Astrid calmed him down."

"Wait, what did you say?" Stoick questioned.

"Haleth, is Valka still in there?" Beren inquired.

The blonde Elf nodded and looked at Stoick.

"Are you Hiccup's father?"

The chief nodded and looked at the king with disbelief.

"Are you talking about my wife?" Stoick shook his head, "My wife's been dead for years!"

Beren shook his head and motioned to the hut.

"Haleth, please take Stoick to them," Beren turned towards the meeting room, "and bring them to the meeting room when they are ready. I think your friends should stay out here for a few minutes."

Stoick followed Haleth inside the hut and Alagos left with Beren. Haleth pushed open the door and Stoick felt like he could fall over. Hiccup looked so peaceful sleeping there on the bed with Astrid holding his hands and keeping his hair out of his eyes. The lady that Stoick thought he'd never see again turned towards the door and her eyes widened.

"Stoick?" her voice trembled as she stood from the edge of the bed.

Stoick didn't say a word as he walked towards her as she kept rambling on. She stopped when he put his hand on her cheek and said,

"You're as beautiful as the day I lost you."

Valka began to cry and hugged the large man and Hiccup who had woken up during Valka's rambling smiled and squeezed Astrid's hand tightly.

"Hey Dad," Hiccup croaked and Astrid handed him a glass of water.

"Hiccup!" Stoick hugged his boy in a back breaking embrace but let go when Hiccup hissed in pain.

Toothless showered his rider in dragon slobber and made himself comfortable on the bed. Haleth brought the others in and they said their greetings.

"Are you ready to talk with the king and queen?" Haleth asked when they all calmed down.

"Yes, let's get everything figured out," Stoick said.

Astrid and Toothless mainly helped Hiccup get out of bed and walk since he was still weak from the poison that had been running through his body. All of the elves were sitting in their spots when they all walked in.

"It is good to see you up and moving, Hiccup," Beren greeted.

"It's nice to be up and moving."

"About the prophecy," Beren started, "I know the prophecy cannot be stopped, no matter how hard you try. We can only prepare ourselves for what is coming."

"What is coming?" Tuffnut asked, "It's gotta be bad if it involves Dagur."

"Dagur is trying to bring the Red Death back to life but he needs Hiccup's blood to do it," Rovain explained, "It is an old ritual used by dark sorcerers and witches, back when the land was shrouded in darkness. This deranged Viking thinks if he brings it back, he can control it and take over everywhere but that will not happen."

"Why can't he?" Fishlegs asked.

"The dark magic he is planning to use is too powerful," Mireth butted in, "It was only controlled by people who had trained for several years so they would not lose control. Losing control has proved disastrous and that was why it was banned."

"What will happen when he loses control?" Stoick questioned.

"The Red Death will destroy everything in its path, including Berk and Lainos," Rovain said, "but we know you can stop it. You did it once before."

"That was only because I tricked it," Hiccup shrugged his shoulders, "It'll know what I'm doing when I try to kill it again."

Arthon shook his head, "The Red Death will not think clearly once it is brought back. It will only want to obliterate and anger will consume its mind."

"So you're saying it will be even stupider than last time?" Astrid crossed her arms.

"In a way, yes," Arthon petted his owl.

"Cuin, Alagos, Haleth, Arvellas, and Aran will give you weapons just in case," Beren said, "Mireth, Muin, and Arthon will prepare their medical supplies and after everything is prepared, Haleth, Muin, Aran, and Arvellas will be moved to safety."

"But Father-" Aran was cut off as Beren raised his hand.

"You are the next king, Aran," Beren said, "In case something happens, you four will be all that is left of our race and we cannot have the Elven race dying out."

"Yes Father," Aran finished and smoothed Valaina's ruffled feathers.

"Speaking of Muin and Haleth, where are they?" Valka spoke up.

Mireth, Arthon, Cuin, and Alagos all stood from the table and searched the room for the two Elven children. Toothless's ears perked at the sound of screaming and he raced outside and down the trail.

"Toothless!" Hiccup called.

Astrid and Hiccup got on Stormfly and she hurriedly flew after the Night Fury. The animals were going crazy from the sound of screaming and the scent of bad strangers. Everyone followed the four to the entrance and found that the portal was open and the screams were leaking through. Toothless vanished inside and they flew inside.

Dagur's men filled the cave and two of them were holding the two missing children who were crying and screaming as they struggled in the burly men's arms.

"Guess who I found?" Dagur laughed and sneered at the two Vikings, "Ready to play, Hiccup?"

**A/N: Sorry it took so long guys. My computer is on its last leg and life is like 'oh, let me be hard and awful and horrible'. I had spring break though so I got some time to type this up and my computer is holding up. **


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Hello my lovely followers! Another chapter for you all to read. Lots of stuff has been happening lately, writer's block, a family accident, and me having to evacuate my house because of the Butte Mountain Fire, but my family and I are safe and the house is still standing. School has been cancelled so I have time to work on the story. I hope you guys enjoy and I'm so sorry for the wait. Warning, some of this content is not for sensitive viewers and I don't own HTTYD.**

Chapter 7

Third Person's P.O.V.

"Put them down, Dagur!" Hiccup ordered and Toothless growled.

"Why should I? They would make great play things," Dagur stroked Haleth's cheek and the she Elf bit his hand.

Dagur used his other hand to slap her and she let go.

"Don't touch them!" Astrid yelled.

"I'll make a bargain with you, Hiccup," Dagur ran a finger along the edge of his dagger, "Come with me to the island with your Night Fury and Astrid, and resurrect the Red Death or I'll kill this brat."

Dagur pulled Haleth's blonde hair and she screamed. The others came through the portal and Cuin fell to her knees.

"Haleth!" she screamed as she looked desperately at her daughter.

Alagos pulled out his sword and pointed at the deranged Viking.

"If you harm her-"

"I'll go but Toothless and Astrid stay," Hiccup said.

"Hiccup, no," Astrid said.

"But what if they try to get you back after we leave?" Dagur proposed.

"We'll go Hiccup," Astrid placed a hand on his shoulder.

"We'll go with you. Now give Haleth and Muin back," Hiccup said.

"This is how it'll work, when we hand the girl over, the dragon will walk forward and when we hand the boy over, you two will walk forward."

"Hiccup, we can't let you do this," Stoick said, "We'll find another way."

"No Dad, there is no other way without getting Muin and Haleth killed," Hiccup argued and turned back towards Dagur, "Let's start then, shall we?"

Haleth was shoved forward and Toothless walked towards the Vikings who restrained him when he was in arm's length. Muin was shoved forward and Astrid and Hiccup stepped towards Dagur. Dagur personally restrained Hiccup in the old leather collar with the chains and leather manacles that he had used before.

"I'm gonna break you Dragon Conqueror," Dagur laughed and Toothless growled, "If you try anything, I will slash the blonde's head clean off her shoulders."

Dagur's group headed out of the cave and to the beach where their boat waited. The rest of his crew that had stayed behind on the ship cheered when they saw their captain coming back with the prisoners and hurriedly prepared to leave. They reached the deck and went to the door that led below. Astrid and Toothless were taken to the cells and Hiccup was taken to Dagur's room.

**(More Dagcup, if you're uncomfortable, please skip to the next bold)**

Dagur pinned him to the wall and placed wet kisses on his neck, which made Hiccup flinch and struggle to get away. Dagur nibbled at his earlobe and ripped Hiccup's shirt off of his body, letting the tattered remains flutter to the floor. Hiccup flinched and whimpered from each touch and nearly started to cry when Dagur began to remove his pants.

"Get off of me!" Hiccup exclaimed and hit and kicked Dagur as hard as he could.

"No, no Hiccup, I will break you and make you mine," Dagur whispered and licked the edge of his ear, slowly as to put him on edge.

The smaller freckled boy kicked and Dagur went down into a fetal position, whimpering and covering his crotch as to protect it from any further damage. Hiccup ran for the door and his shaking hands fumbled with the intricate looking lock as he desperately tried to escape, get his friends, and leave to hopefully find a safe place.

A rough hand yanked his shoulder back and sent the brunette tumbling to the floor. The air whooshed out of him like a balloon. Dagur dragged Hiccup to the bed and attached the chains to the head of the bed so Hiccup's hands were above his head. He took his shirt and pants off and crawled on top of Hiccup, ready to enter.

Hiccup began to cry and pulled roughly at his restraints to the point where his wrists were raw. He felt it down there and Dagur was trailing kisses all over his naked body

"Stop, please," Hiccup's voice cracked.

"Nope," Dagur smirked and Hiccup screamed as he continued struggling and squirming against the rough leather.

**(It's over)**

The door burst open and Toothless stood in the doorway, his back arched and teeth bared, with Astrid behind him. The Night Fury leapt at the red headed Viking, knocking him to the floor. Dagur raised his hands up and kept Toothless from ripping his face and throat apart while Astrid managed to take Hiccup's restraints off and helped him put his pants on.

"Oh gods Hiccup," Astrid said, "I'm so sorry we couldn't come sooner."

"It's okay. How, how did y-you get out?" Hiccup asked and Astrid wiped his tears away.

"Toothless must have heard you screaming and he got so angry that he broke his cage open," Astrid explained and gave him a quick kiss and a hug to comfort him.

Hiccup kissed and hugged back and then looked at his dragon. Dagur was on his feet now and searching frantically for a weapon to hold the dragon back. A plasma blast built up in Toothless' throat and he fired but Dagur rolled out of the way.

"Toothless, let's go," Hiccup said and they ran out of the room and onto the deck.

"You fools! Get them!"

Berserkers were everywhere on the deck when they arrived. Toothless shot many down with a plasma blast and Astrid took down a few that managed to get passed. The Night Fury had a path cleared really quick and roared to the two teens.

Dagur tackled Astrid from behind and sent punches to her face but she raised both of her arms to cover her face.

"Astrid!" Hiccup kicked the side of Dagur's face and shoved him off with all his might.

The chief lunged towards the freckled boy and landed a punch on his cheek. Hiccup blocked the next one so Dagur grabbed him by his hair. Toothless was surrounded by Berserkers with weapons so he couldn't help his rider and two Berserkers had ganged up on Astrid. They needed help. Toothless roared again and ripped one Berserker's arm off before ripping the throat out of another and gained several cuts and a knife in his leg.

Dagur smiled wickedly and pulled out a knife, swinging wildly and letting out a crazed laugh. He was knocked off Hiccup and the knife went flying across the deck. Alonnen let out a loud caw before attacking one of the men holding Astrid. An emerald blur was attacking the men surrounding Toothless and the Night Fury ran to Hiccup and Astrid.

They climbed onto Toothless' back and he dove straight down into the water. The force nearly knocked them off but they managed to stay on and Toothless swam to the best of his ability back to the island where the others were waiting for them on the shore, Alonnen and Valaina following.

The Deadly Nadder took off from the shore and spewed sand everywhere in her hurry to get to her rider and friends. Stormfly helped Hiccup and Astrid onto her back and pulled Toothless out of the water and flew back to shore. Arrows flew past them and one landed in the Nadder's leg. She squawked loudly and faltered in her flight.

"Stormfly!" Astrid exclaimed and looked for the source of pain, "Arrow in her right leg."

"We'll treat it when we find a safe place," Hiccup responded.

They landed on the sand and ran to the king.

"We have agreed to go to Berk," Beren explained, "They know where Lainos is and cannot get to it because of the magical barrier but they may attack Berk. We will help because of your bravery to go with Dagur and save Haleth and Muin."

"Okay," Hiccup said, "Let's go."

They all saw the tear tracks on Hiccup's cheeks and the new bruises forming but decided not to question it until they got to the safety of their home. Everyone got on a dragon and headed to the small island not too far off. Hiccup nearly collapsed from exhaustion and Astrid wrapped her arms tightly around him. Tears raced down his too-pale-to-be-normal skin as he finally let it out again.

"You okay, bud?" Hiccup asked.

Toothless cooed from below Stormfly but Hiccup saw the, thankfully, not major wounds.

"Here, lay down like this."

Astrid adjusted Hiccup so that he was lying across her lap. The new position helped Astrid hold Hiccup in the saddle and comfort him better than hugging from behind.

"He-he was al-almost inside me, Astrid," Hiccup sobbed

"We won't let him do it again Hiccup," Astrid ran her fingers through his hair and wiped his tears away.

They were quiet for a while and Astrid comforted Hiccup while he cried.

"Go to sleep, Hiccup" Astrid said, "I'll wake you when we get there."

Hiccup nodded and cried himself into a light sleep on Stormfly's back.

The flight back to Berk was long and quiet and Astrid nearly cried herself when she remembered what she saw when Toothless broke open that door. Then anger consumed her and she wished she could beat Dagur's head in for what he had done to Hiccup. No one should be raped; no one should be forced into doing something like that. It was so, so wrong but yet, it had happened. They landed in front of the Haddock house and Astrid gently shook his shoulder.

Hiccup woke with a start and tried to smack Astrid away but she managed to calm him down and helped him to his bed. The trek there was long and he collapsed in the bed.

"I'm sorry," Hiccup whispered.

"It's okay," Astrid laid a light kiss on his forehead and waited for him to fall asleep.

The others were outside but the other teens went to spread the word of Dagur. Stoick, Valka, and the Elves came inside the house and the two Vikings almost went up the stairs but Astrid stopped them.

"He's sleeping," Astrid said, "There's something I need to tell you." 

Astrid explained everything that she saw when she got in that room and was shaking by the end. Stoick punched the wall closest to him, Valka and the Elves for once looked murderous, and Alagos took Haleth and Muin outside.

"Did he sustain any injuries?" Arthon asked.

Astrid nodded her head.

"Some bruises and cuts, his wrists are raw, but mentally, it's taken a great toll."

"Dagur will pay for what he did," Rovain growled, "Do you want Cuin to look at him when he wakes to make sure he was not injured too badly?"

"Yes please," Valka said.

"Just let him sleep for now. He freaks out when you try to wake him and he's so exhausted. Stormfly and Toothless need help, though. Stormfly got hit by an arrow in her leg when we escaped and Toothless has several cuts," Astrid said and Arthon followed her to the Nadder.

The Deadly Nadder squawked when the Elf tried to come towards her.

"It's okay, girl," the blond raised her hands in the universal sign of peace, "He's a friend."

The beautiful dragon calmed slightly at the presence of her rider and began to purr when she rubbed the back of her scaly neck in smooth circular motions. Arthon stepped forward with caution and dropped all of his weapons where he had been standing to show her that he meant no harm. Stormfly tilted her head at the peculiarity and stared into deep hazel eyes as his hand rested on her snout. A scent that was mingled of many herbs drifted into her nose and she calmed fully and sat on the ground with a small 'thump'. A rough tongue came out and licked his hand before he went to her side.

"She likes you," Astrid smiled and scratched under her dragon's chin.

The arrow, thankfully, wasn't too deep and easily came out. There was no poison and Arthon cleaned and bandaged it. While they were heading back, they noticed Vikings bustling about, collecting weapons and readying defenses for when Dagur came to attack.

The blonde led Arthon up the stairs into Hiccup's room. Toothless was curled up at the side of the bed so he could guard his rider from any more attacks. The Night Fury growled and stood, holding his back leg off the floor.

"He's going to help you, Toothless," Astrid rubbed the ebony dragon's head to calm him.

"I know you and Hiccup have been through a lot," Arthon kneeled down in front of Toothless, "I am sorry for treating your rider and his love like they were enemies but you three saved my son. You taught me that all humans are not bad. I want to return the favor by helping you."

Toothless blew warm air in the Elf's face and laid down again with his injured leg sticking out.

"This is going to hurt," the Elf grasped the bone handle.

Astrid knew it wasn't the first time Toothless had gotten something sharp in his leg but it was still painful coming out. Toothless whimpered in pain and nearly bit Arthon's hand off.

"Toothless!" Astrid scolded.

"It is alright. He is on edge and exhausted," the med Elf pulled a bag out and scooped some paste onto his fingers, "Eat this, Toothless, it will help you sleep."

The herb paste tasted bitter but he swallowed it and rested his head on Hiccup's stomach before dozing off almost immediately. The two headed back downstairs and Astrid joined Stoick by his chair.

"How many do you think he'll bring?" Astrid asked Stoick while she waited in the Haddock house.

"Probably most of his tribe," Stoick grumbled while he angrily sharpened a sword.

Valka placed a hand on his shoulder and looked worriedly up at Hiccup's room.

"I hope he'll be all right," Valka said, "I say we all get to personally beat Dagur when we get the chance."

"Valka, does rape happen with dragons too?" Astrid asked.

"I've only seen it twice, once shortly after I came to the dragon nest and the second a couple years after the first. With the first, a big brute of a dragon had done it to a small weak female and when the Alpha found out, he let the other dragons rip him apart, and it was the same the second time. From the knowledge that I've gained, most dragons hate it. There are very few though that enjoy it but those are the corrupt dragons that couldn't be saved. The dragons' mating rituals are about gaining respect and love for your future mate and to show that either of the mates will protect the other from harm and raise nestlings. Dragon family bonds are also tightly knit so if one of their family is hurt, they will retaliate and protect the injured," Valka explained, "Toothless will rip Dagur apart."

"He considers Hiccup as part of his family," Beren said, "I have never seen a human and dragon have such a close, intricate bond."

"How did Hiccup and Toothless meet?" Aran asked.

"Hiccup was trying to prove to me, to everyone, that he could be a Viking so he shot down Toothless, but I didn't believe him because we all used to think of him as useless. After dragon training, which I put him in, he would see Toothless every day in the forest and they got closer. Everyone, except Astrid, didn't know about Toothless until Hiccup was nearly killed in the arena after completing his training," Stoick answered.

"What did you do afterwards?" Valka asked.

"Hiccup let it slip that only dragons can find the nest and so I used Toothless to find the nest and nearly got everyone killed in the process," Stoick ran his hand down his face, "I regret everything I did back then, how I always treated him, or when he was picked on by everyone in the village."

"We all regret how we treated Hiccup," Astrid wiped a tear away, "I still can't forgive myself for what I did to him."

"Everyone makes mistakes," Valka placed a hand on her love's and Astrid's shoulders, "It is part of who we are."

"Even Elves have their mistakes," Queen Rovain mentioned.

The door creaked open and Aran came walking in with Arvellas in his arms. Everyone was instantly alert and Valka laid down some blankets for the prince to set the she Elf on.

"What happened?" Beren asked as Mireth looked her over.

"We were helping the Vikings prepare for war and were near the forest when Arvellas' head began to hurt and she was seeing things," Aran explained, his tattoos glowing in the firelight.

"What did she see?" Rovain questioned as she kneeled down by the blond Elf.

"Lots of blood on a rocky, grey island with a volcano, a huge dragon with missing flesh, and a hero's empty funeral boat," Aran moved some hair from Arvellas' sweaty face, "There was more but Arvellas passed out before she could tell me."

"What does it mean?" Stoick asked, "Why does she see things?"

"There will be lots of death in this battle with the Red Death and a great hero will die but we do not know who," Rovain explained and dabbed at the young Elf's face with a damp cloth.

"Arvellas got her powers from her mother who was part of a special bloodline of Elves that we call Seers because they have visions of the future when something big is about to happen, like this prophecy. Sadly, she is the last of this bloodline because her mother died in childbirth and her father died when we were last raided by humans. He was a great friend of mine so I took her in after I promised him that I would take care of her and protect her for she is like my own daughter," the king sighed at the memory.

The blonde Viking disappeared up the stairs and sat by Hiccup, running her callused fingers through his hair.

"Why do bad things happen to good people?" Astrid whispered.

Toothless stirred awake and cooed as a way to say he didn't know. He was wondering the same thing while he was in a light sleep. None of it would've happened if Toothless never met Hiccup. The Night Fury tensed at the thought and looked at his boy with even sadder eyes. It pained him with what he was about to do but it might keep him safe. The dragon sped down the stairs and out the door towards the forest while pushing people and Elves out of the way.

"Toothless!" Astrid exclaimed as she rushed after him but couldn't keep up.

Aran sprinted faster than was humanly possible after the dragon and was nearly upon him when Toothless whirled around and shot a warning shot at the prince's feet and roared.

"Toothless! What are you doing?" Astrid called, but the dragon just gave her a look that was mixed with sadness and determination like a clear river that someone stepped in and riled up the mud, before rushing off into the woods.

"What is he doin'?" Stoick huffed as he watched Toothless' tail disappear.

"I don't know. Toothless just gave Hiccup a sad look before running out," Astrid furrowed her brows in thought before her eyes widened, "I think if he leaves Hiccup, he could lure Dagur away from Hiccup."

"If Dagur gets him, he'll use him as bait to get Hiccup because he needs them both to get the Red Death," Valka said.

A roar drew their attentions away from the forest and to the sky where a large dragon was diving down towards them. Stoick gripped the handle of his axe but Valka gasped in surprise when she saw who it was.

"Cloudjumper!"

The Stormcutter landed with a large 'boom' and rubbed his large head against Valka as he purred and whined.

"I told you to stay behind," Valka said.

Cloudjumper shook his head and glared at her with his big, yellow, intelligent eyes as if to say 'I would never leave you with danger around'.

"Alright, but I need you so we can find Hiccup's Night Fury, Toothless. He ran off into the forest," Valka climbed onto his back with the help of her staff.

Astrid let out a roar and Stormfly, Thornado, and the other teens on their dragons landed next to her a minute later. The blonde climbed on and explained what happened before turning to Aran.

"Stay here, Aran," Astrid said, "Arvellas needs you and I need you to watch over Hiccup. Keep them safe."

"I will," Aran ran back to the Haddock house as they took off.

"Everyone split up," Stoick ordered, "The Elves are on foot in the forest so don't shoot them."

He looked pointedly at Snotlout and the twins before flying away in search of his son's dragon.

Astrid searched the cove first and had Stormfly sniff around and he had been there recently so they flew about.

"He couldn't have gotten far," Astrid said to her dragon and she replied with a squawk.

They searched for hours but there was no trace of the Night Fury. Stoick found Astrid near one of the beaches and flew Thornado next to Stormfly.

"We have to head back, Astrid," Stoick said.

"He could still be out here," Astrid said, a look of determination in her eyes.

"I know but the sun is setting and storm clouds are moving in. We'll have no chance of finding him in the dark and the rain and none of the dragons have picked up his scent," Stoick said, "We will find him, Astrid, but right now we need to head back and protect the village."

The clouds broke then and fat rain drops had Astrid soaked in seconds. She looked down at her clenched fists as she thought of what to do. Toothless' tracks and scent would be washed away from the storm and it would be hard to see anything. The blonde was about to reply with a no when they heard the roar not too far off.

"Go Stormfly!" Astrid ordered and the dragon complied.

Stoick followed and they came to a beach. Toothless was wrapped in two pairs of bolas and Berserkers swarmed over him in the storm. Thornado roared at some that were running towards the downed dragon and sent them flying into the water while Stormfly launched spikes at the ones on top of him. The impaled ones fell to the sand but more came from the ship. Thornado sent more flying with a sound wave and Stormfly sent fire towards the ones that were missed.

"Grab Toothless!"

Stormfly dove and grabbed the captured dragon in her claws before flying back. Bolas whipped through the air and caught the Nadder mid-flight and sent her spiraling towards the ground. The impact sent Astrid tumbling from her dragon's back and her head hit a rock. Her vision blurred and went from dark to light like a dimming candle that was struggling in the wind. Someone called her name and there was squawking and roaring and a blast of a blueish purple light near her along with lots of something landing near her but her head hurt too much to register what was going on. All she knew was that it was dark now but she saw slips of pale light now and then. Then there was a large crash that sent her struggling to sit up and trying to get her brain to concentrate and the roars were quieting.

Astrid managed to reach out and touch the barrier that was built around her and saw it was Stormfly's spikes that protected her. She pulled the ones that were stuck in the sand and made a hole large enough for her to crawl out of.

The Berserkers' boat was far off the shore, Stormfly was still struggling to get the bolas off of her body, and Stoick and Thornado were doing the same.

"Stoick!" Astrid stumbled over as her vision swam from her sudden movement but she made it over and cut the ropes off.

"Sit here Astrid," Stoick put Astrid in Thornado's saddle and went to set Stormfly.

"Where's Toothless?" Astrid asked as Stoick climbed on behind her.

"The Berserkers got him but you need medical help and we're outnumbered," Stoick pointed to the blood running down the side of her face, "You hit that rock pretty hard when they shot you down."

"Where are the others?" Astrid asked, "They could go after them."

"They already are," Stoick pointed out to the ship and Astrid finally noticed the others attacking the ship.

They landed outside the house and Stoick helped Astrid inside so Mireth could attend to her head wound.

"What happened?" Aran asked.

"We found Toothless but he was being attacked by the Berserkers so we tried to help but they shot us down with bolas and Astrid hit a rock when they shot her and Stormfly down," Stoick explained, "The others are going after them. How's Hiccup?"

"Still sleeping," Mireth reported and wrapped bandages around Astrid's head, "You may still be dizzy for a couple hours so just sit and rest."

"Can I sit with Hiccup upstairs?" she asked.

Mireth nodded and helped her up to the stairs to sit on the edge of Hiccup's bed before heading back downstairs. Astrid ran her fingers through Hiccup's reddish brown hair and hoped they would get Toothless back before Hiccup woke. It wouldn't help his health at all to know that his dragon had been taken. Sadly, Astrid's hope were smashed when Hiccup began to stir and his moss green eyes fluttered open.

"Astrid?" Hiccup croaked and rubbed at his throat.

"I'm here," Astrid grabbed his hand and rubbed her fingers over his knuckles.

"Where's Toothless?"

Astrid tensed at the question and Hiccup felt dread grow in his stomach like weeds.

"T-the Berserkers have him," Astrid whispered, "We tried to save him but-"

"Dagur has him?" Hiccup's eyes widened, "No, no, no."

"Don't worry. The others are trying to save him right now."

"Is that how this happened?"

Hiccup's nimble fingers gently brushed over the bandage wrapped around the blonde's head and she nodded.

"They shot me and Stormfly down and I fell off and hit a rock."

Hiccup swung his legs over the edge of the bed and stood but swayed a little. Astrid grabbed his elbow and steadied him before standing up herself. They went down the steps slowly.

"What are you doin'?" Stoick helped the two down, "You're supposed to be restin'."

"Why did he leave?" Hiccup asked.

Stoick sighed and sat Hiccup down in a chair and Astrid sat next to him.

"He thought he was the reason you were hurt so he left to lead Dagur away," Stoick explained.

"Why would he think that?" Hiccup whispered and brought his knees up to his chest.

"Because he's scared," Rovain stated, "Sometimes when you are scared, you think or do crazy things."

Arvellas groaned and sat up, her palm flat against her forehead and her eyes squeezed shut.

"How are you feeling?" Aran placed his hand on her back to support her.

"A bit exhausted but fine," Arvellas' eyes widened and she turned to Hiccup, "Toothless has left already, has he not?"

The freckled Viking nodded with downcast eyes and Astrid placed a hand on his shoulder. The door burst open and Snotlout stood there.

"He's here."

Hiccup and Astrid froze at the news.

"We're coming," Stoick said and his nephew jogged back outside, "Astrid and Hiccup, round up the elderly and children and get them to safety and Hiccup, you'll join them."

"No, Dagur still has Toothless," Hiccup said and stood from the chair, "As long as Dagur has him, I will fight to save him."

"Hiccup-"

"No Dad! I will not hide!" Hiccup interrupted and glared at his father.

Stoick took a few steps towards his son and lifted him over his shoulder.

"Hey!" Hiccup struggled and hit the chief's back with clenched fists.

"I'm sorry, Hiccup," Stoick said as he walked outside, "but I will not lose my son to a madman."

Arthon sprinkled some kind of dust in Hiccup's face and the boy drifted off. Stoick draped him across Stormfly's saddle then turned to Astrid.

"Get him, Haleth, Muin, and the others to safety," Stoick ordered the blonde.

"Okay," Astrid took off with Hiccup and the two Elf children.

"You can't just knock him unconscious!" Valka exclaimed as she glared at the chief.

"But Valka-"

"I want to keep him safe too, Stoick, because he's also my son but doing that will not help," Valka poked his chest, "He won't be happy with you at all."

"What did you want me to do?" Stoick asked, "He's as stubborn as you and me combined and tryin' to talk to him won't work."

"Telling him you were scared would've worked."

Stoick was speechless and rubbed a hand down his face. A scream drove him back to the problem at hand and he mounted Thornado.

"We have to go. I'll make it up to him after," Stoick turned to everyone, "Beren, can you sneak onto the ships and get Toothless?"

"We can," the king replied, "Aran and Arvellas, go with the elderly and children."

"But Father-" Aran started.

"Arvellas is still too weak to go on her own, and if anything happens to me…" Beren started but couldn't continue.

"Alright Father," the silver haired Elf went back in to help Arvellas.

The Elves ran towards the docks and Aran left to the safe place in the forest with Arvellas on his back. Stoick turned towards his love as she climbed onto Cloudjumper, a glare still set on her face.

"I'm sorry, Valka," Stoick said.

"Don't apologize," Valka sighed, "I know that you did what you thought was right."

Their dragons took to the air and towards the battle. Berserkers ran everywhere down at the docks and Berkians and dragons stopped them from going any further into the village; their battle cries, roars, and the clang of metal against metal filling the air.

"You ready?" Stoick called.

Valka nodded and Stoick released a battle cry, Thornado following.

**A/N: And now the battle begins! Again, I'm sorry this took so long. Please comment about what you thought and/or favorite or follow!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hello my lovely and loyal followers! Here's chapter 8 of this wonderful story and now we have a battle scene with lots of bloodshed, violence, and some death but you'll have to read to find out who dies. I don't own anything from HTTYD. Now read on!**

Third Person's P.O.V.

Weapons clashed against other weapons, armor, or flesh as the battle raged on. Both Vikings and dragons fell to the blood stained ground while others fought on. Gobber hacked away at Berserkians with his axe hand while most of the teens and some other Vikings fought on their dragons flying above. The twins and their Hideous Zippleback spewed gas at one of the ships and ignited the green gas, sending pieces of wood and metal flying in the air and many Berserkians overboard. Hookfang caught fire to multiple bola catapults and regular catapults on the other ships and Meatlug dropped rocks onto the others. Cloudjumper, Valka, Thornado, and Stoick kept any Berserkians that managed to make it by, at bay.

"This way!" Astrid called to the children that were huddled behind a cart, "I'm getting you to safety!"

The children, two boys and one girl, climbed into the makeshift cart that Stormfly had tied around her waist and joined the other children and elderly already sitting in it.

"Are there any others?" Astrid asked Gothi.

The old woman looked over their small group and nodded her head before holding up one finger.

"Who's missing?"

"Hannah," the brunette girl that just got in answered, "She was last in the barn."

"Okay," Astrid headed for the barn.

Stormfly hovered above the ground and Astrid ran inside to find the last kid.

"Hannah?" Astrid called out.

A sword swung through the air and Astrid rolled to avoid it. The steel blade came down towards her and she blocked it with her axe and pushed it away. A Berserkian that looked to be around her age stood there, sneering. He wasn't very big and he didn't have a lot of muscle but he moved fast. Astrid stood and dodged an attack while swinging from the side. The axe grazed his arm and he cursed under his breath.

"You'll pay for that bitch!" the boy swung.

Astrid parried the sword and went for his gut but he blocked the curved metal and pushed her away. The yaks and the sheep were freaking out in their stalls, some even hitting the stall doors to try and escape. They continually parried or blocked or dodged each other's blows but Astrid got a few cuts in along his arms and sides. His sword blade finally caught in the curve of her axe and she twisted it out of his hands, the sword flying up and into one of the stalls, causing a yak to jump away from it. The Berserkian boy jumped at her but Astrid swiped her axe across his side and left a deep cut that would cause him to bleed out. He gasped and fell to the floor with a 'thump'.

"Hannah, are you in here?" Astrid wiped her bloody blade on the hay, "It's me, Astrid. I've come to bring you to safety."

A small red headed girl with freckles that were splattered across her skin poked her head out from behind several bales of hay in the corner, a knife clutched in her shaking hands.

"It's okay," Astrid kneeled down.

Hannah ran into her arms, the knife now tucked into the sheath on her belt. Astrid picked up the girl, since she was probably around five or six years old, and ran back outside. Something grabbed her ankle and she fell. Hannah skidded across the grass outside and the boy was over Astrid with his sword. Astrid's eyes widened and she grasped for her axe but it was too far away.

"Goodbye you little bitch," he growled.

A knife whizzed through the air and sunk all the way to the handle in the boy's eye socket. He fell on Astrid, a silent scream on his face. The blonde shoved the corpse off and looked back at Hannah. The girl was shaking and her knife was missing from the sheath on her waist. Astrid stood and placed the girl in the basket.

"Thanks for saving me," Astrid smiled.

Hannah nodded and smiled before hugging the little brunette next to her. Astrid got back on Stormfly and flew her passengers to an empty cave far out in the forest. While everyone went inside, she lifted Hiccup off the saddle, put his arm over her shoulders, and carried him inside.

Aran and Arvellas were sitting inside at the very back, the she Elf's eyes closed as she rested and the prince's arm around her waist. Astrid laid Hiccup by the wall near them and laid a kiss on his forehead.

"Make sure he doesn't leave," Astrid said, "Stoick's orders."

Aran nodded and watched as Astrid left. The Viking untied the basket, dragged it inside, and left on her dragon to the battle. Everyone was keeping the Berserkians at bay but Astrid saw no sign of Dagur or Toothless. Then she caught sight of Beren sneaking onto one of the ships.

'What is he doing?' Astrid asked herself.

Her blue eyes saw Valka and Stoick so Stormfly hovered near Thornado.

"Why did Beren go on one of the ships?"

"They're lookin' for Toothless," Stoick explained, "What happened?"

"I went looking for the last kid and was jumped by a younger Berserkian," Astrid looked down, "He's dead."

"Have you seen Dagur?"

Astrid shook her head and a deeper scowl settled on his face.

"Take over here. I'm gonna look for him."

Astrid nodded and Thornado flew towards the ships, shooting echo waves at large groups of Berserkians. Valka watched Stoick leave and looked at Astrid, a small splatter of fresh blood on her right cheek and mud smeared all over her clothes, face, and hair. Cloudjumper blew another group of Berserkers away with his wings and Stormfly shot several more with her spikes.

"Where is Stoick going?" Valka asked.

"To find Dagur!" Astrid answered.

One Berserkian slipped by Stormfly so she jumped off and ran after the stray Viking, her axe raised. The Berserker went down when the axe buried itself in his flesh and Astrid pulled it out with a sick squelching sound. The blonde turned around just to run into another Berserker who she also took out. A dizzy spell hit her and she fell to her knees, the world swimming and her stomach doing flips as a large Berserker came at her with a curved sword. Astrid knew she wouldn't be able to dodge in time and fear squirmed around in her chest.

'I love you, Hiccup,' Astrid thought.

But the sword never came down on her. Astrid opened her eyes. Valka stood in front of her with her staff raised, the curved blade slightly buried in the wood. The woman shoved the man away and smacked the side of his head which sent him to the ground with a moan and he almost stood but Stormfly sent two spikes into his side.

"Thanks," Astrid tried to stand but another spell hit her.

"Get on Stormfly's back and don't get off," Valka ordered, "You're still hurt from earlier."

Valka helped Astrid quickly climb back onto her dragon. Stormfly continued fending off the intruders with fire and spikes, sometimes even her own talons, while the Viking girl tied herself to the saddle so she wouldn't fall off.

The spells lessened but she still felt sick and disoriented so she just clung on for dear life and watched the battle continue on.

Hiccup woke to a dim cave full of the elderly and children from his village. He couldn't remember anything at the moment and someone kept tapping their fingers on the cave floor and it was annoying him.

"You are awake."

He jumped at the voice but calmed when he saw it was just Aran, Arvellas sleeping at his side.

"What happened?" Hiccup noticed he was tapping his fingers in impatience.

"Arthon put you to sleep with some medicine because Stoick did not want you running into the battle," Aran explained as he shifted slightly.

The memory of him hitting his father and yelling at him came to the front of his mind. Then nothing after Arthon blew some purple dust in his face. He tried to stand but couldn't move and saw his arms tied to his sides.

"Do not fight against the restraints or you will waste your energy," Aran ordered.

"I have to find Toothless," Hiccup stated.

"What good are you going to be to him if you die?"

Hiccup stopped and thought. He and Toothless had such a close bond that if one died, the other would die of a broken heart, slowly from malnutrition from not eating and depression.

"He'll die anyway if I don't do something!" Hiccup wriggled and grasped the handle of his knife.

"The others are going to save him."

"You don't know that!" Hiccup began cutting the rope, "Dagur could be torturing him right now!

The rope snapped loose and the Viking boy was on his feet and outside in the rain before Aran could say a word.

"Hiccup!"

The freckled boy kept running, determination set in his face. He would find Toothless and together they would beat Dagur.

'I'm coming, bud. Just wait a little longer.'

Toothless roared and pulled at the chains that the Berserkers held in a death grip. The ones holding the chains looked ready to soil their pants while Dagur just smirked as he struggled to get away. Toothless glared at the deranged chief, all of his hatred leaking through and he wished he didn't have the leather muzzle so he could shoot the insane red head and then rip him apart.

'You hurt Hiccup!' Toothless roared even though they couldn't understand him, 'You son of a bitch! I will make you pay! I will burn your sorry human ass and then slowly tear you apart, limb by fucking limb! You fucker, you do not deserve to live!'

Dagur smirked in amusement and cackled at the Night Fury's attempts of breaking free. He had to admit, this was the angriest he had ever seen the dragon but he shrugged off the worry.

"I can't wait for Hiccup to try to save you," Dagur giggled, "Then I'll have you both and we can release the Red Death. You'll be hung up on my wall and Hiccup will be my personal play thing and I will make the earth quake from my power!"

Toothless shook from anger, the thought of Hiccup being back in this asshole's claws made his vision go red. The chains slipped from the Vikings' hands and he leapt on Dagur who was too shocked to have dodged in time. His claws dug into flesh, fresh blood spurting from the wound and a copper smell filling the damp air. All the Vikings that came at him were knocked aside as bloodlust and rage consumed his mind. With a sharp tug, Toothless was brought back and hit a wall, a daze coming over his thoughts.

"You bastard," Dagur laughed as he stood and wiped the blood from his wounds.

The blood only smeared on his arms and clothing and cast a more sinister look about him. Dagur kicked Toothless' side a couple times and dragged a knife deep along his front left leg. Toothless held back a whimper and instead glared at the Berserker chief with defiance.

"Get him out of here and onto the boat," Dagur looked around the cave they had happened to find when looking for a place hide the ebony dragon, "It's time."

Toothless growled as he was dragged out into the rain and mud. His cut stung and the mud made him feel dirty but he didn't care. Hiccup was in trouble and he needed to get away but the dragon was too tired from the adrenaline rush. The thought of Hiccup being touched by Dagur sparked another rush of adrenaline and he stood in the slippery mud. Blood pumping and the determination and protectiveness for his rider, his best friend, overcoming his exhaustion, he pulled harder but it was no use. The Berserkers had him in his holding cell on the boat on the other side of Berk.

The rain made it hard to see and maneuver through the forest and the mud made his prosthetic nearly useless but Hiccup kept going. He could hear the sounds of battle far off and memories of the old dragon raids came to mind.

The ground slipped out from under him again and he landed for the who knows what time in the mud. Hiccup groaned and pushed himself back up and continued the trek. An angry yell caused him to turn and a Berserker knocked him down.

"Dagur will be excited to know who I found."

The Berserker tied Hiccup's hands together and yanked the boy off the ground.

"Let me go!" Hiccup called, "Help!"

A gag was put over his mouth and silenced his yells. The auburn haired boy struggled and tried to get away but nothing was working.

'I'm so sorry, Toothless,' Hiccup thought.

Dagur listened to the sounds of battle and the struggles of the captive Night Fury below deck. He stared out into the forest and frowned. Hiccup wasn't found yet and his lookout hadn't returned. His sharp eyes caught movement not too far off and he smirked.

"Looks like my lookout isn't useless after all," Dagur turned towards his crew, "Get ready to leave boys! We have special cargo coming!"

Berserkers bustled about to follow his orders and Savage retrieved the metal collar and chain for Hiccup. The chief took it and watched as the Berserker pulled a struggling Hiccup along.

"I told you, you can't escape."

The collar closed with a click and Dagur dragged his captive down to the room where the banging was coming from. The guard unlocked the door and Dagur walked in.

Toothless was attached to the opposite wall with thick metal chains and a leather muzzle around his mouth. His pupils were slits and he was trying to bare his teeth through the muzzle but when Hiccup appeared in his vision, he stopped pulling against his restraints and his pupils widened.

Dagur locked the chain to a hoop next to Toothless and stopped in the doorway.

"I can't wait to release the Red Death," the chief sneered and closed the door.

"Toothless, oh thank the gods you're okay," Hiccup scooted closer to the ebony dragon who scooted further away, "What's wrong, bud?"

Toothless whined and couldn't look his rider in the eye. He failed in protecting the person who was the most important to him and now they were sailing towards their deaths.

"I'm not angry, bud. You did what you thought was right," Hiccup moved a little closer, "You tried to protect me and I understand that."

Hiccup leaned on the dragon's uninjured side and waited for the reptile to move away but he didn't. Toothless settled down instead and began licking his injuries to the best of his ability.

"It'll be okay," Hiccup stated.

Aran ran through the mud and rain, his keen emerald eyes piercing through the storm and the forest to find the boy but he was nowhere in sight. His tracks had been washed away, leaving no sign of him.

"Let me go! Help!"

The Elf prince changed direction and listened for anymore yells but Hiccup's voice had gone quiet. He cursed under his breath and looked closely for footprints. There were faint outlines in a small clearing and Aran followed at a faster speed, hoping to find the chief's son before he was taken off the island. He had a good feeling where the boy was being taken and sprinted for the shore.

He broke through the forest line and skidded to stop with the water up to his ankles. There was a ship a ways off with the Berserkian symbol on the sail. Valaina flew off the Elf's shoulder and looked at her friend.

"Follow them but not too closely," Aran ordered, "and be safe."

The Humming Hawk flew off and the silver haired Elf ran back into the woods. He needed to let the others know and get back to the people and Arvellas hiding up in the cave. Mud unexpectedly moved under his feet and sent Aran tumbling down the hill until his back hit a bush. The Elf went to push himself up and hissed at the pain in his side and his ankle before falling back down. Warm liquid slowly oozed from a cut on his cheek and his ankle flared up when pressure was put on it. Aran stood anyway and hobbled towards Berk, wincing with each step.

A loud roar attracted his attention to the cloudy sky. Thornado landed next to him and Stoick jumped off.

"Did somethin' happen to Hiccup and the others?"

"I tied Hiccup up and he cut himself loose. I followed but lost his tracks and he was taken by the Berserkers. Valaina is following right now," Aran explained, "The others should be fine."

"But you aren't," Stoick pointed out, "We'll get you treated by Gothi back at the cave."

The chief helped the prince onto the Thunderdrum and flew him to the cave. Arvellas greeted them at the entrance and helped Aran further inside.

"What happened?"

"I just took a tumble," Aran smirked, "Why? Are you concerned?"

The blonde she Elf poked his injured side and he winced.

"Of course I am concerned," Arvellas raised an eyebrow, "Are you sure it was just a fall?"

"If you count rolling down the side of a hill in the mud and rain and hitting a bush a simple fall."

Arvellas leaned forward and kissed the silver haired prince. He was surprised but kissed back, pushing a strand of blonde hair behind her ear.

"You are an imbecile," Arvellas smiled, "but you are my imbecile."

"This imbecile is lucky to have a princess."

The blonde blushed and dug through her bag for medical supplies. Haleth and Muin giggled and Arvellas sent them an evil glare.


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey followers, sorry I haven't updated in a while but I have some bad news. **

**I have lost inspiration for this story. **

**I'm sorry but life became busy after my last update. More studying and homework left less personal and writing time and when I did get the time, I just couldn't write because I was so exhausted and I didn't want to force myself into writing because then it wouldn't come out well and I couldn't do that to you guys. Now that school is out, I'm working more for my job to help the family. There is good news.**

**I will continue the story.**

**I do want to continue this story and I feel bad for this temporary hiatus. I'm going into my senior year of high school and taking less classes than last year so I'll have more time to work on it and, hopefully, gain back the inspiration. **

**I'm sorry again for this news and I understand if you don't want to wait that long.**


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